


skies of black and gold

by poppyrainstorm



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Sleeping Beauty Fusion, Angst with a Happy Ending, Character Death, Fae & Fairies, Flashbacks, Gen, M/M, Minor Kiyoyachi, Past Relationship(s), minor iwaoi - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-10
Updated: 2018-11-21
Packaged: 2018-11-30 03:58:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 59,273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11455500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poppyrainstorm/pseuds/poppyrainstorm
Summary: The room has not seen the light of day in a century. The entire castle has not seen the light of day in a century.Neither have the people in it, though.The people in it. Suga stiffens, dragging his attention away from the man in front of him. He thinks of his parents. He thinks of Yui, of Shouyou, of Tooru. He thinks, dimly, in the back of his mind, of Hitoka.They’ve all been asleep for a century.A century is a long time, but Suga knows that none of them have changed. How could they have? They have not seen the comings and goings of the world in years. He remembers the spindle, though.God, does he remember the spindle.Or: Suga has been asleep for a hundred years and Daichi is the man who wakes him up, and they'renotin love





	1. Sunrise

Sugawara Koushi knows as soon as he wakes up that the curse has won. 

There are lips, soft against his own, and the pressure disappears after a moment. He doesn’t open his eyes for another, wanting to stay asleep, in this moment before he meets his true love. 

He opens his eyes. 

The man in front of him has his back turned, and Sugawara can’t see his face, but he can see dark hair and a bowed head. He can see the insignia of Helnia. 

He can see enough. 

Sugawara closes his eyes for another moment, and then he opens them and sits up, brushing aside the gauzy curtain that’s never served much use beside his bed. 

“Hello.” He says, gently. His voice is rusty-he hasn't used it in one hundred years, after all. 

The other man spins around like he’s been shocked, and stares at Suga for a moment, blinking several times, rapidly. 

“Hello.” He says. His face is open, honest. He looks like the kind of person who can’t hide a thing, because it’s all there, like an open book just waiting for the wrong person to come and read it. 

Suga swings his legs over the side of the bed. “I’m Sugawara Koushi.” He says, still soft, still gentle. “I assume you came to wake me up?” 

“I did.” The other man says. “I did not think I would be the one to wake you up. You’re quite famous.” He adds. “I am not the first to try to reach you. I am only the first to succeed.” He doesn’t say the words proudly, either, as some would. He says them a bit despondently, looking at his boots, which are caked with mud. Suga wrinkles his nose and, for the first time, notices that the entire chamber is covered in a thick layer of dust. It makes sense-the room has not seen the light of day in a century. The entire castle has not seen the light of day in a century.

Neither have the people in it, though.

The people in it. Suga stiffens, dragging his attention away from the man in front of him. He thinks of his parents. He thinks of Yui, of Shouyou, of Tooru. He thinks, dimly, in the back of his mind, of Hitoka. 

They’ve all been asleep for a century. 

A century is a long time, but Suga knows that none of them have changed. How could they have? They have not seen the comings and goings of the world in years. He remembers the spindle, though. 

God, does he remember the spindle. 

He remembers when he was younger, when his parents burned all the spindles in front of his eyes. He remembers Koharu, a kitchen girl, being executed for spinning. His parents had taken him to the occasion, and as she was tied up, tears streaming down her face, the ax had come down. Suga had wanted to close his eyes, but couldn’t. He still remembers the sickening noise. 

He still remembers the crimson flood that followed the drop of the ax. He washed four times after the ceremony, and he still could not wash off the feeling of the blood that spattered against his clothes. He remembers. 

And yet, he still fell, in the end. Koharu meant nothing. 

He has always been a terrible prince. 

The other man is watching him, and Suga stands, regaining some of his grace, and heads towards the door, swiftly and quietly. He needs to find them. He needs to tell somebody. His true love does not turn around. His head stays bowed. His eyes stay trained on the ground, steady.

He sees guards, and he passes them all, ignoring their cries of surprise. He sees the vines retreating from the gates, and he runs past. He heads for the kitchen. 

The door swings open easily, and he nearly shouts. There is a skeleton on the kitchen floor, and the floor is stained with the same dark red that he saw at Koharu’s execution, but it isn’t fresh, it’s old and stained. There’s a knife and a cutting board on the ground-the knife is protruding from the skeleton’s ribcage. 

Suga feels sick. 

He had never thought that perhaps people would be caught in fatal positions when the curse hit. He hadn’t thought much of anything. He wants to throw up, but there’s nothing in his stomach-he hasn’t eaten in one hundred years. 

“Yui?” He asks, into the dim silence. “Yui? Are you there?” 

There’s no response, and the sick feeling in the pit of Suga’s stomach grows. Yui can’t be dead. She can’t be dead. Shouyou isn’t dead. Tooru isn’t dead. He knows Hitoka isn’t dead. He clings to those words as he continues, further into the room, terrified and feeling more alone than he ever has. 

“Koushi.” A voice says from behind him, and he spins around to see her standing there, looking terribly exhausted and relieved. 

“Yui.” He says, and then he’s rushing towards her, and half crying as he hugs her, but a moment later, he’s sobbing. “Yui, I’m awake.” 

“I know, Koushi.” She says, “I know.” 

They stand like that a while, and then he lets go, still crying. “Let’s go upstairs.” Yui takes his hand and squeezes it. “You can tell me about them.” 

Suga nods, and lets himself be led through the castle, all the way up to the battlements, where there isn’t anybody yet. He sits down, letting the tears flow, after one hundred and twenty one years, and Yui hugs him again, twice as hard. 

“Yui,” He says, “I’m so stupid.” 

“You aren’t.” She says, and looks out at the vines, still climbing slowly down the towers. “Suga, you are a lot of things, but stupid has never been one of them. Tell me.” 

“He’s...well, he’s from Helnia.” Suga replies, with a watery laugh. “He didn’t seem happy about waking me up, but my parents are going to be singing his praises soon enough, so he’ll have something to feel good about then. And now I have to fulfill my end of the bargain, because I promised.” 

“I’m sure they won’t hold you to that.” Yui says uncertainly, and the wind blows her short brown hair in front of her face. “You were only seven.” 

“They’ll hold me to it.” Suga says firmly. “And it’s just as well, since I’m the one who went and got myself pricked in the first place.” 

“They won’t seriously hold you to that.” Yui says, and this time she turns to face him. “You didn’t know what you were agreeing to. Besides, he’s Helnian! Shouldn’t that make things even easier?” 

“No,” Suga says, “It’s because he’s Helnian that this is going to be so difficult in the first place. Come to think of it, I’m not even sure that he’s a prince.” He adds. “He could be a knight.” 

“He’ll be a prince.” Yui says with a sigh, and her eyes coast over the horizon. “Helnia wouldn’t send anyone less than a prince.” 

“Yes,” Suga sighs. “I suppose you’re right. I don’t want to do this.” 

“You don’t have to.” 

“Yes, I do. My parents will go ballistic if I back out of this deal. Sometimes I think that’s why they agreed to stop executing people found with needles in the first place. I really hadn’t wanted to see him again.” Suga sticks his tongue out at the sun. It’s just as well, honestly.

Yui is silent for a moment. She’s probably trying to figure a way out of this mess, but Suga’s already thought it over as many ways as he can. There isn’t a way he can back out. Maybe that’s for the best. He’s the one who was idiotic enough to make it in the first place. 

Then, “Can your true love play any instruments?” She asks tentatively. 

“Probably. He already looks perfect at everything else.” Suga says. He sighs again. “What am I going to do?” He asks, more himself than Yui at this point. 

They sit and watch the sunrise for a long time, and Suga thinks it might be his last moment of peace for a long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here we go! come visit me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/poppyrainstorm) or on [tumblr](https://poppyrainstorm.tumblr.com)!!


	2. Stars

When they get down from the battlements, Suga’s face is cold, and he’s already tired again, remembering the man who probably still isn’t in his bedroom, remembering Shouyou and Tooru and Hitoka. He wishes he’d never enacted the curse. He wishes that that the person in his bedroom was all a dream. 

There were so many dreams though. 

Dreaming for a hundred years is more of a curse than anything else, really. He saw so many things. 

He saw Hitoka being strangled, being taken, being killed. He remembers the dreams as vividly as if they’d happened yesterday. God. 

He remembers the dreams. They were always the same. Nightmares for hundreds of years.

_He pricks his finger, and a bead of blood appears at his finger, and suddenly there’s blood everywhere, everyone dying, drowning, screaming his name, screaming for him to help, to stop being useless, shouting, dying, Koushi help us you’re worthless you can’t even save a child. Shouyou’s head looking up at him from the ground, blood everywhere, across clothing and ceiling, and his sister, Natsu, kneeling over his body, her face horrified and white. Yui’s dark brown eyes looking at him from a jar as she screams herself hoarse and crumples to the ground, clawing at her neck wildly, opening gashes that bleed the entirety of the ocean out. Tooru, calling for anybody, before Tooru runs into a sword, and looks down, gasping for breath and blood trickling out of his mouth instead before he looks up, and his chocolate colored hair is matted with blood, so much blood, it’s everywhere, everywhere, and it’s all Suga’s fault._

He tries to shake the memories of the dreams, but he knows he can’t.

“Do you think anybody else died?” He asks Yui when they’re back in the castle. Yui’s eyes darken, and she glances up at him. 

“Died?” She asks. 

“Didn’t you see...in the kitchen….?” Suga’s voice trails off, as Yui looks at him with horror stark in her expression. She turns and runs back the way they came. “Yui!” 

In a moment, Yui is out of sight, and Suga is alone. He makes a quick decision, and heads down to the stables next. 

He doesn’t have to go through the same panic he went through with Yui, this time. Shouyou is right outside, crouched outside the door. He looks up when Suga approaches, but his expression is sober, not like the wild enthusiasm Suga knows him to have. 

“We’re awake.” He says, eyes wide. “We’re awake.” 

“Yes.” Suga says, crouching next to the other boy. “I-yes.” He doesn’t want to explain to Shouyou about the man in his room, who woke him up. He doesn’t want to tell anyone else yet. His parents probably already know. 

“We’re awake.” Shouyou says, voice barely a whisper. “Which means that we fell asleep. We were all asleep.” 

“Yes.” Suga replies. 

“It actually happened.” Shouyou says, voice still colored with incredulity. “You actually activated the curse. I can’t believe it. One hundred years.” He speaks with wonder, but he clearly wants to ask a question, so Suga stays silent. A moment later, he speaks again. 

“Suga?” 

“Yes?” 

“They said the curse meant that everybody would fall asleep. But there’s….there’s thorns and vines outside. There are new houses outside. Not everybody fell asleep.” Shouyou’s voice is trembling now, and he sounds afraid. “And it’s been a hundred years.” 

Suga’s heart drops into his stomach. 

Shouyou’s mother was outside when the curse hit. He hadn’t thought…..

He hadn’t thought.

It seems to be a theme. 

“It’s been a hundred years.” Shouyou says. “She’s dead.” His voice is raw with grief, and Suga knows that there’s nothing that he could possibly say, so he doesn’t say anything. 

They sit there, and Shouyou doesn’t cry, but he stares at the sky, the first sunrise in one hundred years that either of them have seen, and clenches his jaw and remains stock-still. 

*** 

_“You shouldn’t do it.” Yui says, her voice firm. “I don’t know why this is a question to begin with. Of course, you shouldn’t do it.”_

_“Maybe it would be easier,” Suga mumbles. “Then nobody else would have to-,”_

_Tooru scoffs, and rolls his eyes. “Koushi, you made the deal so that you wouldn’t have to go through it in the first place. And even for you,” He adds, poking Suga in the side, “This is ridiculous.”_

_“He’s right.” Yui says. “It doesn’t make sense.”_

_“You’re agreeing with Tooru?” Suga turns to her with betrayed eyes. “Of all people, Tooru?”_

_Tooru clutches his chest and falls backward against the grass. “I’m wounded! You’ve mortally wounded me!”_

_Suga snorts, and turns back to Yui. “But if I did it myself-,”_

_“If you pricked yourself,” She interrupts, “We would all go to sleep. For a century. Suga, it would be a hundred years. When we woke up, everybody you knew outside would be dead, and you would be saddled with some woman or man you didn’t really love, because true love, especially true love at first sight, is a concept. It’s not real.” The certainty with which she says this is staggering. Suga has always believed in true love, and they both know it._

_“I agree with Michimiya.” Tooru says, brushing grass off his tunic and standing up. “She’s usually right. Besides, where would you even find a spindle? Remember that new stable boy who was killed a while back for carrying a needle?” He shudders, and Suga remembers the execution._

_“I don’t know.” Suga hangs his head and accepts defeat. “Fine.”_

_“Exactly,” Yui smiles, and just like that, the topic is dropped. “Exactly.”_

*** 

Now, Suga remembers Yui’s words. He remembers when the idea of pricking himself was the most preposterous thing that he’d heard in years. He remembers. And he wishes he didn’t. 

“Excuse me?” Someone says from above them, and Suga’s head jerks upwards to face the man who was in his bedroom. He’s looking directly at Suga. Suga feels the roof of his mouth go dry-other than the words they exchanged after he’d woken up, he hasn’t spoken to the man who did it. 

“Hinata,” He says slowly, “I’ll be back.” Standing, he walks out of the stables, and the man follows him. Suga can feel eyes trained on his back, but he keeps walking until they reach the garden, where he turns around and faces the man sent from Helnia. 

“Hello.” The other man says, holding out his hand. “We were never properly introduced. My name is Sawamura Daichi.” 

“Sugawara Koushi,” Suga offers, and then remembers that Sawamura knows that already. “I do apologize for my exit. Though you found your way all right?” 

“I did,” Sawamura says, and thank God he doesn’t look too mad. “And really, it’s just Daichi.” 

“Sawamura,” Suga says. He won’t use the Sawamura’s given name. It’s too informal, too soon. “Thank you.” He holds out his hand. “I appreciate you waking me up, I really do. I have been asleep for quite a while.” He’s prepared this speech. 

“I’m aware.” Sawamura says, and he looks as though he’s holding back a smile. Suga frowns, and continues. 

“I’m not your true love, Sawamura.” 

A flicker of surprise crosses Sawamura’s face, along with something else, something that Suga can’t quite place.

“The curse says-,” He says, eyebrows furrowing. Suga suppresses a sigh. He knows what the curse says. He’s been through the exact words hundreds of times, trying to find a loophole. 

“Yes.” He cuts Sawamura off. “I am quite aware of what the curse says, Sawamura-san. I also am aware that to base true love off of a faerie’s prediction is….,” Here he hesitates, not wanting to bring the wrath of said faerie down. “Unwise.” He finishes. He doesn’t want to explain to Sawamura, a man he’s barely met, that part of the reason he wanted to avoid the curse to begin with was so that he wouldn’t be saddled with someone that a faerie said was his true love. He doesn’t want to say that he’s not sure he’s capable of love, especially after what he did, which was already quite selfish.

It’s then, when Sawamura is looking at him curiously, no doubt wondering what prompted that statement, that Suga’s mother finds them. Suga sees her inky hair first, because it stands out, a stark contrast from the rest of the white stone that lines the garden. 

“Koushi!” She shouts, and flies at him, enveloping him in a hug that takes all the air from his lungs and crushes his ribcage. Sawamura stands back respectfully, and Suga hugs his mother back, albeit a bit awkwardly, for the first time in a century. 

Sugawara Ayaka has been asleep for a hundred years, and she isn’t exactly young anymore, but she still maintains the cheerful presence that she did all those years ago. Her brown eyes are still bright and her smile is still unwavering.

That is, until she lets go of her son. Then she dissolves into tears. 

Sawamura is watching the entire spectacle, somewhat uncomfortably. Suga pats his mother’s back, and tries to regain some sort of control over the situation. 

“Koushi,” She sobs, “It happened. We tried s-s-s-so hard, and it still h-happened.” 

“Yes,” Suga says, deciding not to tell her that he voluntarily activated it. “Yes, it did.” 

“Someone woke you up,” She says, smiling through the tears. “Someone-,” 

“Yes,” Suga interrupts, and detaches from her to gesture towards Sawamura. “He did.” 

“Your Majesty.” Sawamura bows to her. It’s awkward, but his mother buys it, which is the goal. “It’s an honor to meet you at last.” 

“Oh, he _is_ sweet,” His mother says, turning back to Suga, and wipes some of the tears off of her face. “At last, though?” 

“Yes, mother.” Suga says, and purses his lips. The fact that his family was somewhat famous in the outside world makes him a bit uncomfortable. He’s always kept to his own, and it’s a part of him that his parents have accepted. It’s a bit hard to get emotionally attached to a person when you know that you’ll be sleeping for a century at some point in your life, and they won’t. It’s why he was only ever friends with people who lived inside the palace. Yui, Tooru, Shouyou. 

Hitoka. 

“Your family is something of a legend.” Sawamura says. “The Queen, the King, and the cursed son.” 

Suga’s face burns bright red. Is that all he’s known as? 

“Come inside,” Suga’s mother says, pulling Sawamura towards the castle. “It’s not safe out here. The riots-,” 

Suga instinctively looks over his shoulder at the words. It wasn’t too long ago that the people began rioting. It was right after his birthday, when somebody inside the castle had let the existence of the curse slip. His parents were always talking about them, and most of the time, when he was with Shouyou or Yui when he was younger, they were forced inside. There was never a problem like that with Tooru, since Tooru wasn’t allowed outside to begin with. The riots had consumed most of his ordinary life as a child. They’d continued until his parents had lost most of their power. 

“Your Majesty,” Sawamura says, holding up a hand. “All due respect, but some things have changed about your kingdom. The riots ended over seventy-five years ago.” 

Suga feels his jaw drop. The riots were among the reasons that he’d pricked himself. 

And they’d ended less than twenty-five years after he had cursed everyone. 

“How do you know that?” His mother demands, and her hands shake just a little bit as she looks at Sawamura, the man who knows more history than she does. 

“It was in a textbook.” He says, a little uncomfortably. “A while ago.” 

Suga smiles a little despite himself at his mother’s horrified expression. 

“Well!” She says, clasping her hands together. “In any case, the king will want to meet the young man who woke Koushi up!” This, at least, will be true. As long as his father has been king, he has been a person who has wanted to know everything as soon as it happens, if not beforehand. 

Suga swallows down the lump in his throat, decidedly not thinking of how his father would react to the fact that they fell asleep in the first place.

“Inside,” His mother says, still looking pale, fiddling with a lock of her long hair and gesturing them all into the palace, where Suga’s father, the king, awaits them. 

The throne room is huge, covered in sheets of gold, and a thick layer of dust and cobwebs. When Suga enters it, he sneezes several times, and Sawamura claps him on the back. Looking up, Suga takes in the image of his father. 

Whenever he’s in the presence of his father, Sugawara Koushi alters his name. 

Not literally, of course, but around everybody, he is always Suga, or Sugawara. The only people he’s been called Koushi by are his parents and Yui, who is like his sister. In the throne room, trapped like a fly in honey in the gaze of his father, Suga doesn’t feel like a Sugawara. He doesn’t feel worthy enough to bear the name. He doesn’t feel like a prince, or even quite human. He is just Koushi. 

He doesn’t realize he’s bowed until his father tells him to rise. Sawamura is bowing on his side, and his mother has left him in favor of embracing his father. It makes sense. She hasn’t seen her husband in a century. 

His mother introduces Sawamura, but Koushi hears it distantly, as though they are underwater. It makes sense, he rationalizes. His father and his true love are meeting for the first time. It makes sense that he’s nervous. 

Or it would, if he was anybody else. He has nothing to worry about. Koushi’s only job now is to play the happy husband. He will be expected to be married to Sawamura, after all.

He repeats the words like a mantra. It make sense, it makes sense, it makes sense. After all, it’s been a hundred years. It makes sense-it’s been a century. It makes sense that some people died while the curse was enacted. It makes sense that the riots stopped. It makes sense that the man standing by his side is his true love. It makes sense that Shouyou’s mother and Yui’s friend are dead. It makes sense, it makes sense, it makes sense. 

But none of it really does. 

***

 

That night, he tries to sleep. 

He lies awake in bed for hours on hours, shifting his position and trying desperately not to think of the nightmares that might return. He stays this way early into the morning, and when the moon is bright and the night is black as ink, he finally drifts off. 

_Blood, blood, blood everywhere, and the ocean is made of blood and tears, the tears of Yui, who’s tearing her throat apart, and Shouyou, whose body is jerking lifelessly on the ground, and Tooru, who’s looking down at the stain spreading from his chest like he can’t quite believe it. Tears of his parents, who are wailing about the baby boy they couldn’t save. There are new tears, too, and they’re his as he reaches out, desperate to do something, anything to save them, please, let him die, let them live, please, please-_

Suga wakes up with bile in his throat and doesn’t make it anywhere before it comes out, and he sits, retching, on his bed for just a moment, bent at a painful angle over the side of his bed, and coughing. 

For a moment, he thinks he’s still dreaming, before he remembers that he’s awake. 

He’s awake. 

The words are wrong enough that he sits up, and winces as his stomach threatens to empty itself again. 

He gets up, instead. Pulls on a loose robe and walks out of his bedroom. He knows he hasn’t been asleep for long. He knows immediately that something is wrong. There isn’t an air of silence. On the contrary, everything seems alive, despite the late hour. 

Everything seems alert and the farther downstairs he goes the more he’s convinced that they aren’t asleep. 

He goes to the kitchen first. 

Yui is sitting in a far corner, eyes half lidded, yawning furiously, but still awake. She looks up, along with everybody else in the kitchen, when Suga enters the room. 

“Your Highness,” The head chef says, bowing low when she sees him. Suga smiles, albeit a little uncomfortably, and nods. She rises, and the kitchen turns back into the hub of excited chatter as Suga makes his way across the room to Yui, who is half asleep, but she jerks awake when he sits down next to her. 

“You couldn’t sleep?” She asks, stifling another huge yawn. 

“No. Well, yes, but….nightmares.” Suga says as a way of explanation. “You couldn’t either?” 

“Nobody can.” Yui replies, laughing mirthlessly. “We’ve all been sleeping for a hundred years. I don’t know why we honestly thought that we could get any sleep.” She looks around and yawns again. “The thing is, we all want to sleep. We just…..can’t.”

Suga nods, and they sit in silence for a few minutes, listening to the kitchen. The talking is hushed, but everybody is very clearly awake, and the atmosphere is warm. Above them, he can hear the rest of the castle, buzzing with energy. The kitchen, in addition to being one of the busiest places in the entire castle, is also the gossip hub. Suga can hear quite a few conversations right this minute about the sleepless state of the castle. He wonders if there’s anybody at all who’s actually asleep right now. 

Then he remembers Sawamura. 

He hasn’t been asleep for a hundred years, Suga thinks, somewhat bitterly. He’s probably asleep right now, and not having nightmares either. 

Yui squeezes his hand, and they sit there, watching the morning unfold. Yui keeps yawning, and Suga knows that they’re all probably somewhat exhausted. But they can’t sleep, and they probably won’t be for a while, either. 

He thinks of Hitoka, and watches the stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It continues! Updates will probably be on Mondays from here on out.


	3. Twilight

It’s been a week, and Suga has managed to avoid Sawamura quite a few times in favor of seeing Yui or Shouyou. 

Hitoka still hasn’t been found, and worry has managed to worm its way into the pit of his stomach. She’s probably in the village, he tells himself. She’s probably with her mother. Thank God Yachi Madoka was in the castle when he pricked himself.

Tooru has been avoiding him, too, and no matter how hard Suga tries to find him, he isn’t anywhere. The only reason he’s even certain Tooru is still here is because whenever he asks Yui or Shouyou, they tell him that they saw Tooru just yesterday, or something along those lines. 

Suga is almost certain that he’s losing it. 

It’s been a week, and the only thing his mother is concerned about are wedding plans. 

He hides behind pillars when he hears her coming, not wanting to be fitted for his wedding outfit, or asked whether he prefers the blue flowers or the gold. 

“Honestly,” He says to Yui one day as she washes dishes and he dries them. “You’d think that this was what I was born for. I don’t even think they remember it was a curse to begin with.” 

Yui glares at him, and puts down the plate she’s been scrubbing. “They didn’t forget, you idiot. They’re trying to cheer the entire kingdom up, because the entire royal family missed a hundred years. They’re trying to be positive. Honestly.” She adds, and shoves the plate into his chest. 

Suga wordlessly dries it. The plate is warm under his fingers, and he notices the faint crack along one side that means somebody had dropped it when the curse was activated. 

When they’re finished, Yui walks away, muttering under her breath, and Suga decides to go up to the battlements for fresh air. 

As he climbs the stairs, he thinks about how the kingdom has changed. They’re half the size they were a hundred years ago, which is understandable. It’s a bit difficult to think that while a royal family is asleep, the surrounding kingdoms wouldn’t take at least a small piece of the territory. 

He reaches the top of the staircase, and pushes his shoulder against the heavy wooden door. It creaks open slowly, getting stuck twice, but it yields, and Suga steps out to face the wind, closing his eyes, and letting the cold sweep over him. The smell of rain is present in the air, and although the drops aren’t coming down yet, the clouds are thick and black and heavy, promising an imminent storm. 

***

_Suga is walking by the stables when he hears Hitoka crying._

_He hadn’t meant anything by it, just to find Shouyou and talk, but Hitoka sounds utterly distraught, and he doesn’t want to intrude upon her privacy. It’s only when she chokes something out that he realizes that she isn’t alone._

_“It’s going to be me,” She sobs, and there’s a mix of terror and embarrassment in her tone, but she speaks with a finality that makes it evident. “It’s going to be me.”_

_“Yachi!” He hears Shouyou say, voice painted with surprise. “Why would you think it’s going to be you? They have every servant and guard and villager to choose from! The chances that you’re even considered are-,”_

_“No.” Hitoka says, “I know it’s going to be me. I heard Her Majesty talking about it yesterday. It’s going to be me. They’re going to send me away, and I’m n-n-never going to see anybody ever again.” Her voice wavers a few times, but she’s steady in her infliction._

_“It’s not-,” Shouyou says again._

_“They’re going to give me to the Fey!” Hitoka sounds absolutely hysterical, and then something clicks in Suga’s mind, and he realizes that they’re talking about the bargain he made eight years prior. He’s fifteen. He hasn’t thought about the deal he made in eight years._

_He hasn’t thought who might be chosen._

_He sure as hell never thought it’d be Hitoka._

_They’d never choose Hitoka._

_Hitoka, who’s sweet and kind and always asks him how he’s feeling, instead of what he has to do. Hitoka, who loves the stables, but who’s never allowed to take a horse out, because she’s a maid. Hitoka, who serves his mother and who has never done anything wrong in her life._

_At least, nothing wrong enough to warrant this._

_How probable is it that Hitoka is going to be chosen?_

_Suga leaves the stables and goes to find his mother._

_“Koushi!” She exclaims when she sees him. “There you are, dear! I’ve been trying to find you for hours!”_

_“You have?” He asks, and feels guilt for a moment before he remembers Hitoka. “Mother, I have a question.”_

_“Yes, dear?”_

_“Who do you think will be chosen to keep the promise we made when I was seven?”_

_“Who?” She echoes, and then smiles at him. “Oh, Koushi. That’s already been decided! You have nothing to worry about, dear. We can beat this.” She says the words like the curse is a cold. Not something that could change his entire life._

_“Who?” He asks, ice eating its way up his throat. “Who did you choose?”_

_“It was quite easy, really. We chose one of my maids. Madoka’s daughter. What’s her name….” The queen thinks for a moment, and then smiles again easily. “Hitoka! Yachi Hitoka.”_

_The name hangs in the air for a moment, and silence rules the room. Suga doesn’t say anything-he doesn’t think he could say anything if he tried. His voice won’t work. His head is spinning. The queen walks over to the dresses spread out on the bed, and examines them. She clearly sees no problem._

_This is the first time Suga ever thinks about what the deal meant for anybody else._

_“Koushi, darling, are you alright? You’ve gone pale.” His mother’s face is filled with concern._

_“Hitoka.” He chokes the words out, feeling some of the panic that Hitoka herself must have felt in the stables with Shouyou. “You chose Hitoka.”_

_“Yes.” She replies, with a puzzled expression. “Is something wrong?”_

_“Yes.” He says, and his voice is faint, but a bit steadier. “You need to chose someone else. You can’t choose Hitoka. It has to be somebody else.”_

_“That’s quite impossible.” The queen’s face has relaxed a bit. “She’s been chosen. She wasn’t the best at what she did by any stretch of the imagination, in any case. It’s really better that she’s leaving us. Besides, it’s not as though she’s dying, Koushi. You can still visit her.”_

_“Better.” He echoes. “Better that Hitoka is leaving.” His voice sounds strange to his ears, and his hands twist together tightly._

_“Are you feeling sick?” She comes up to him and presses her palm to his forehead. “You aren’t burning up, but perhaps it’s better that you go and see-,”_

_“No.” He says vehemently, and shakes her palm away. “No, I don’t need to see anybody. Why can’t you choose somebody else?”_

_“This again?” She looks exasperated. “We told the Faerie Council a few months ago our choice. Even if we wanted to, we couldn’t change that. Madoka can visit her occasionally if she so desires, and you can do the same. Really, she’s only a maid. We can replace her. The important thing is you.” And with those words, she turns away from him and goes back to the dresses. “If you want to change it,” She says, “You’ll have to take it up with them.”_

_Suga only just makes it out of the room before he says something he'll regret later, and leans against the wall, shivering, not for himself, but for Hitoka._

_Months. They’ve kept this a secret for months._

_Hitoka’s fate is well and thoroughly sealed._

***

“Your Highness?” A voice comes from behind him, and Suga looks up, startled. 

“I’m coming,” He says, reflexively, not seeing the person behind him until he turns around, coming face-to-face with Sawamura Daichi. 

“You don’t need to be anywhere.” Sawamura says. “I just...I saw the open door and thought perhaps somebody was up here.” 

“You’re not wrong.” Suga says, smiling humorlessly. “Clearly. If you’ll excuse me-,” 

“Wait.” Sawamura says, and he takes a step forward. Suga, instinctively, takes a step backwards. “Sugawara, I think we should talk.” 

“Excuse my saying so, Sawamura, but there’s no need for us to talk. We’re meant for each other, as you’ll recall. Surely we don’t need to take such measures as conversing.” Suga attempts to make his way around Sawamura again, but the other man is solidly blocking the doorway. Suga scowls. 

“Really, it’s just Daichi.” Sawamura says. “And I think we do need to take such measures, saying as you’ve barely spoken two words to me in the week since you’ve been awake.” 

Suga is trying to maneuver his way around Daichi-Sawamura, he reminds himself. “Daichi. Fine. May I please,” He says, aborting his attempts to escape. “Be allowed downstairs?” 

“Not quite yet,” Daichi says, smiling slightly as he closes the door easily. Suga wants to scowl again, but he refrains. 

“What do you want, Your Highness?” He finally says, sitting on the stone and looking up at Daichi. 

“I want,” Daichi says, sitting down so that he’s facing Suga. “To know you.” 

“You do.” Suga says, looking down at his hands, and twisting them, before remembering Hitoka and untwisting them again.

“No, I don’t.” Daichi insists, reaching out and stilling Suga’s fingers, which are fiddling with each other. Suga stiffens, but doesn’t push him away. Sawamura Daichi’s hands are warm and calloused. “I know what I’ve read about you. I know your name, and I know that you and your family tried to prevent the curse, but failed.” 

“They didn’t fail.” Suga mutters, and this time, he does pull his hands free. “They did everything perfectly. I was the one who acted like an idiot.” 

“Pardon?” Daichi says, leaning forward, and Suga rolls his eyes. 

“Nothing.” 

“Tell me something about yourself.” Daichi says, “Something that the textbooks wouldn’t have covered.” 

“ _I_ was in textbooks?” Suga stares at him in disbelief. “You said our kingdom was in books. Fine. But _me_? Actual textbooks that children who were in school were required to read?” 

“Yes.” Daichi replies simply. “I told you. Your family is quite famous. You, especially. I read an entire section devoted to only your childhood with the curse.” 

Suga gapes. “An entire section.” He says faintly.

“Yes.” Daichi repeats. “It made it sound quite dramatic. The heir to the throne is cursed. The beloved golden boy has the sorrow of a century of sleep ahead of him. Always scrounging for friends who won’t resent him for sending them off to sleep in a few years. As I said, quite dramatic.” His eyes are laughing. 

Suga crosses his arms. “It wasn’t like that.” 

“Then tell me what it was like.” Daichi urges him, and Suga glares. 

“Why do you even care about my childhood? You can read all about it in a book. Why ask me?” 

“Because,” Daichi says, “The books clearly didn’t get it correctly. I have no doubt the historians were doing their best, but here is a primary source on my true love, and I’ve finally gotten him to talk. I have no intention of letting this opportunity to waste, Sugawara Koushi.” 

“I’m not your true love,” Suga says. 

“That’s what you said before as well,” Daichi notes, “But I don’t think that’s quite true.” 

“True love is rare and precious, and one kiss does not guarantee it.” Suga says. “This is not true love. This?” He gestures between the two of them. “This is a faerie’s prophecy. They are not the same.” 

He doesn’t believe what Michimiya does, that love doesn’t exist, but he does believe that it sure as hell doesn’t manifest this quickly. He doesn’t know Sawamura Daichi, and Sawamura Daichi does not know him. 

Almost as if he’s reading Suga’s mind, Daichi laughs. “You’re stubborn.Tell me something about yourself that you haven’t already said.” 

“What do you want to know?” Suga relents, snorting. “I am fairly boring. The curse is my one claim to fame.” 

“That isn’t true.” Daichi says, and he’s smiling. Suga marvels inwardly at his persistence. He’d have given up long before now. 

“Fine.” Suga thinks for a long moment, and Daichi patiently folds his hands in his lap, as though they have all the time in the world. Thunder rumbles in the distance. 

“Anything you like,” He says, after another minute passes and Suga still fails to produce anything newsworthy. “Favorite color? Best friend? Childhood incident that still haunts you to this day?” 

Suga glares. “The only childhood incidents that still haunt me are the executions. You’d like to hear more about them, perhaps?” The smile drops off Daichi’s face, and Suga knows he’s found something. “Fine. The first execution was a kitchen girl. Her name was Saito Koharu. I didn’t know her terribly well.” Lie. He knew her. “She knew about the curse, because back then, everybody knew about the curse. She still spun. It wasn’t around me, it wasn’t a threat, but my parents burned the spindle, and then beheaded her.” He’s on a role now, bitter words spilling from his mouth. “The next person to die was our new stable boy-the one before Sh-Hinata. He died with a needle in his pocket. Comprehend that, if you can, Daichi. A needle.” He laughs, and hears hysteria in his voice, but he keeps going. “You want to hear another story about my fabulous childhood? Let me tell you one more. Let me tell you about the couple who were burned alive. Let me tell you about how their faces screamed while the fires of Hell raged around them. Let me tell you about the burns that reached bone. Let me tell you about-,” 

“Stop.” Daichi interrupts. His face is slack with horror, and he’s staring at Suga like he’s crawled from some other dimension. Suga feels a grim sort of pleasure, telling someone, finally. Daichi keeps looking at him, and in his face is a mixture of pity and disgust. Suga can’t tell whether it’s because of his story or his parents. He slumps, all the fight drained out of him.

“One more thing, Sawamura Daichi,” Suga says softly, feeling exhausted suddenly. “Let me tell you about how I was forced to watch every single death. Every. Single. One.” He sinks back against the stone floor, feeling tears well up in his eyes and refusing to let them fall, furious at himself, furious at Daichi, furious at his parents. Closing his eyes, he tilts his head upwards and lets the first drop of rain fall on his nose. 

There is silence, and Suga doesn’t know if Daichi’s left, or if he’s still here. He gets his answer a moment later, when warm arms surround him, and Daichi embraces him, tugging Suga’s hands from their death grip. Suga rests his forehead on Daichi’s shoulder, for just a moment, letting the fear and anger and exhaustion wash over him for the first time in a hundred years, letting himself cry, messily, shudders wracking his frame, as the rain starts to come down. Daichi doesn’t let go, even when they’re both soaked, and Suga is still crying. 

It’s a different kind of crying than what he did with Yui. 

Michimiya Yui has been a part of his life since they were both children. She knows him-she knows enough to know when he’s lying, when he’s upset, when he’s breaking down inside but puts on a facade for the kingdom. 

Sawamura Daichi is different. 

He doesn’t know Suga at all, but he wants to. He believes in true love and fairytales, and probably happy endings, too. Suga wants so desperately to hate him, but he can’t, not when he’s crying into Daichi’s shoulder as the rain sheets down and the wind blows. He can’t, not when he just let Daichi see a part of him that he’d thought was locked away for good. He can’t, not when Daichi woke him up, even though he was never supposed to fall asleep. 

He lets himself cry, and bids the simmering anger, the bottomless regret, and the overwhelming fear a silent _adieu_. 

***

Suga is determined to find Tooru. He’s still wearing his wet clothes, but Daichi has gone to change, and he wants to see Oikawa Tooru again. 

He goes to Yui. After all, Yui knows everything. If anybody knows where Tooru is, it's going to be Yui. When she sees him, her mouth drops open. 

“Were you outside?” She asks him, fetching a towel and wiping the water away from his face, and trying frantically to dry his hair off. “It’s raining!” 

“Yes,” Suga says, taking the towel from her, since his clothes are already heavy with rain, and the towel isn’t going to fix that. “I know. Have you seen Tooru?” 

“Yes.” Yui says, eyeing him suspiciously. “Why?” 

“I need to talk to him.” 

“No,” She looks him up and down, “You need to go change.” 

Suga groans in frustration. “Yui. This is more important than the state of my clothes. I need to talk to Tooru. Where is he?” 

Yui crosses her arms and glares at him. “I am not telling a single thing until you go change into dry clothes. This is not about the state of your clothes-this is about the fact that you could catch pneumonia. Go change, and I’ll tell you where he is.” She throws the towel in the small laundry basket they have in the kitchens, and Suga goes off to find a dry shirt. 

A few moments later, he runs back into the kitchen, mostly dry, and Yui looks at his new clothes. “All right.” She says, finally. “He’s in the South Tower.” 

“Why on earth is he there?” Suga asks, bewildered. “The South-oh.” 

“Right.” Yui turns around. “You want to talk to Tooru, go talk to Tooru. But just remember that he knows, and he probably isn’t happy with you.” 

Tooru knows. 

Suga heads for the South Tower. 

When he gets there, he opens the door, almost silently, but at the last moment, it creaks, and falls open easily. 

Oikawa Tooru is there, and he’s alive. 

He turns around, and Suga starts when he sees his appearance. 

Normally, Tooru takes great pains to take care of himself and how he looks. His hair is always perfect, his eyes are always open and bright, and his trademark grin is always just the right amount of teasing and innocent. 

Tooru’s hair looks like it hasn’t been brushed in years-which, Suga reminds himself, it hasn’t. His eyes are dull and lifeless. His lips are pressed together into a thin white line, and he looks at Suga, not with anger, but with blankness. Suga thinks he’d be happier if Tooru was upset. But his face is blank, devoid of emotion. He doesn’t look like Tooru anymore. 

“Tooru?” Suga says, timid, not wanting to say anything. 

“They’re all dead.” Tooru says, dully. “They’re all dead. I had a nephew, Koushi. I had…” He swallows, hard. “I had a best friend. They’re gone, and….” He lifts his head to look Suga in the eyes, and something sparks in his eyes, like gunpowder. “They’re gone _because of you_.” He delivers the words like a death sentence, like they’ve been weighing down on him for years and years and they’ve been bottled up this whole time. 

Suga remembers Tooru’s nephew. He was young and full of energy and Tooru flourished as the best-loved uncle. He remembers the boy laughing and crying and riding on Tooru’s shoulders. 

He also remembers Tooru’s best friend. Dammit, he remembers Iwaizumi Hajime, no matter how much he might want not to. 

“Do you remember?” Tooru says, and his voice is barely above a whisper. His eyes might as well be stabbing rusty knives into Suga, with their hurt and barely concealed anger. “Do you remember, Sugawara? Do you remember Hajime? Because I do. I don’t think I could forget Hajime if I tried. And he is _dead_.” The raw pain in his voice is evident. 

“Tooru-,” 

“No,” Tooru says vehemently. “They are dead, and they are dead because you couldn’t do something as stupidly simple as staying away from spinning wheels. The queen and king burned them all. Please explain to me how you found a goddamn spinning wheel in a kingdom that has burned the things, and then burned the ashes until they were nothing but wind. Explain that to me, Sugawara.” 

“I-,” 

“You didn’t think,” Tooru spits the words out as though they’re poisonous. “You never think. When we were younger, I thought it was so refreshing to meet somebody who actually got it. Somebody who understood. You don’t understand. You’re selfish. You didn’t see Hitoka before she left.” 

Suga feels cold. “Left?” 

“You thought that because you activated the curse, the bargain wouldn’t still hold?” Tooru glares at him, hatred in his gaze and fury written in every movement. “Faeries don’t work like that. She’s gone. I woke up, and she was screaming. She was terrified. And then she was gone. Sugawara, the only way you could possibly have gotten access to a spindle is if you looked for one yourself. So _why_?” 

Suga swallows, but Tooru is still glaring, expecting an answer. “I...Tooru, I….I didn’t want to send Hitoka away! I asked my-,” 

“I don’t give a shit about any of that.” Tooru says, eyes narrowed into slits. “Why. Did. You. Do. It.” 

“I thought that would undo the bargain,” Suga says, and he wants to cry again. “It…” 

“No!” Tooru shouts, and he seems slightly crazy in that moment. “NO! Hitoka is GONE! Everybody is DEAD! Pricking yourself did NOTHING, Koushi! You didn’t change ANYTHING!” He sits back down on the ledge of the window, breathing hard, and his eyes return to that lifeless state. 

“I’m sorry,” Suga whispers, and he backs up towards the door. “I’m sorry, I thought it would...I don’t know. I thought it would be different.” 

“It isn’t,” Tooru says flatly. “Get out, Koushi. Get out of my sight.” 

And Suga does.


	4. Sunset

They insist on having a ball after the wedding, no matter how much Suga protests, and pleads, and begs. He just wants to get it over with, but they insist on a celebration afterwards, and he hates every second, because every time somebody brings it up, he’s reminded of that moment with the spindle, reminded of the knife through a skeleton’s gut, reminded of Tooru throwing poisoned words at him, reminded of Daichi holding him in the rain when he was never supposed to meet Daichi at all, reminded of Hitoka. 

She still hasn’t been found, and Tooru’s words have been running through Suga’s head all morning, on a loop. 

_They’re gone because of you. They’re gone because of you. Because of you. Because of you. Becauseofyoubecauseofyoubecauseofyoubecauseofyou._

“Koushi!” His mother says, breaking him out of the loop, and he looks up at her, bewildered, before he realizes that he’s supposed to be choosing between three fabric samples, one silver, one gold, and one black. 

“I don’t mind, Mother.” He says, rubbing his forehead tiredly. “Whichever you prefer.” 

Daichi chooses that precise moment to come into the room. His mother smiles whenever she sees Daichi, and this time is no exception. Her beam is bright, but Daichi doesn’t smile back, as he usually does. He looks directly at Suga’s mother and takes a deep, deep breath, then lets it out. 

“I have news.” He says, and he sounds uncharacteristically nervous. “It’s, uh, probably something I should-,” 

“Take Koushi outside,” His mother says, shoving them out with a knowing smile. Daichi flushes beet red. 

“It’s not that!” He says, but it’s no use, and his mother clicks her tongue against her teeth in a fond sort of way as she closes the door. Suga closes his eyes for a moment and then opens them. 

“What do you have to tell me?” He asks. “Not that I’m not grateful to you, for getting me out of the fascinating world of fabric samples, but I will admit to confusion as to why.” 

“Some people came by last night,” Daichi says, his tone clearly trying to be light, but failing somewhat miserably. 

Suga stares at him like he’s gone mad. “And?” 

“And they’re...well, they’re from my kingdom.” 

Suga is still staring, but for a completely different reason. “Helnia. People from Helnia are in the palace right now. People from Helnia are here.” 

“You could say it a bit differently,” Daichi mutters, “Seeing as I’m from Helnia, Sugawara.” 

“And neither of my parents know about this?” Suga is going paler by the second. 

“No.” Daichi says, “But only because I thought that you would be more accepting, and perhaps not see it as a surprise attack, which it isn’t. I guarantee you. I’m your true-,” 

“No.” Suga replies firmly. “We have had this conversation. All right. Take me to them.” 

“Are you quite sure-,” Daichi begins hesitantly. 

“Why did you tell me,” Suga grits his teeth and forces the words out, “If you didn’t want me to see them?” 

“Right,” Daichi says. “Right.” And he turns away and begins walking downstairs. 

They make it up five flights of stairs before Daichi tries to initiate another conversation. 

“Do you often go out on the battlements?” He asks, and Suga pauses his ascension to glare furiously behind him. They haven’t discussed the storm or anything else that happened on the battlements that day, and Suga doesn’t intend to. 

“I don’t see how that’s any of your business.” He says instead, and continues climbing the stairs. The rest of their journey is silence, and Suga realizes where they are a moment too late, before they’ve reached the door, and there’s a man standing outside it who is horribly familiar, and Suga chokes when he fully comes into view. This can’t be real. 

Iwaizumi Hajime is standing outside the door, scowling. His hair is a little longer, and his skin is a little tanner, but there is no mistaking him for somebody else, because this is Iwaizumi Hajime. This is Tooru’s Hajime, who is supposed to be dead. 

Suga stares for longer than is strictly appropriate before Daichi gives him a strange look and jostles his shoulder. Blinking out of his daze, Suga looks at the South Tower door. As far as he knows, Tooru is still in there, but if Daichi’s men were still there as well, then Tooru would be yelling. 

He must be gone. 

Suga breathes a sigh of relief. 

“Sugawara,” Daichi says carefully, looking at Suga’s expression. “This is Iwaizumi.” 

Iwaizumi looks Suga up and down, and then sticks out his hand. “Iwaizumi Hajime.” He says gruffly, and Suga takes it, still unsure as to whether this is all a hallucination. 

“I know,” He says, and shakes it before Iwaizumi gives him a strange look. “Um, I mean! It’s nice to meet you, Iwaizumi-san.” 

“Suga?” Daichi says, and the nickname jerks Suga out of his daze. He turns to Daichi and raises one eyebrow. Daichi flushes and takes a step back. 

“I thought...I’ve heard people calling you...right,” This is the most flustered Suga’s ever seen Daichi, and he will admit it’s somewhat enjoyable. 

“It’s all right.” Suga feels a small smile tugging up the corners of his mouth. Iwaizumi is watching the entire thing, and smirking. Daichi glares at him. 

“Your Highness,” Iwaizumi cuts in, looking at Daichi. “The queen and king sent us, since news has spread that Miliwyn is awake again.” 

“We are,” Suga says, frowning. “But why on earth would the king and queen of Helnia see fit to send soldiers down to Miliwyn in the first place? Surely they know that their prince is unharmed. Quite the opposite, in fact-we are engaged.” The words are bitter as they leave his mouth, but they seem to be the right thing to say, because a little of the tension leaves Iwaizumi’s shoulders. 

“That’s good to hear.” He says. “And the crown did not send us-we came of our own accord. His Highness is our prince-we came to see how he was faring.” 

There’s a moment when Suga processes the word ‘we’, and then he finally thinks to ask. One or two Helnians, he can hide. Three, maybe. Any more than that will be noticeable, especially since Tooru resides in the South Tower for a good portion of his days, and even more since he currently hates Suga. 

“Excuse me, Iwaizumi-san,” He asks tentatively. “How many of your people are here, exactly?” 

“Not many.” Iwaizumi replies, glancing back at the door. “Myself, of course. Kageyama Tobio also came, as did Tsukishima Kei.” 

Suga breathes out, and closes his eyes for a moment. “Very well. And they’re all through that door?” 

“Yes, Your Highness,” Iwaizumi says. 

“Fantastic,” Suga mutters, and then, a little louder, “Daichi. Iwaizumi. Care to introduce us?” He doesn’t wait for their responses before pushing the door open, and he’s greeted with the sight of two men. One of them is tall and blond, sitting on the floor, and looking immensely bored. The other is leaning against the wall, eyes narrowed and lips pressed tightly together to form a perpetually angry look. When Daichi comes into the room, they both stand, eyeing Suga warily. 

“Your Highness,” The angry one says, bowing quickly before continuing to glare at Daichi. 

“Kageyama-san.” Daichi says, turning to the other man, and looking extremely nervous. “It’s been a while.” 

“Yes,” Kageyama says bluntly. “Yes, it has. After you went behind all our backs and waltzed off to Miliwyn to try and wake up the sleeping prince. I’d say it’s been a long time.” 

There’s silence for a moment. Iwaizumi, who’s entered the room by this time, crosses his arms. Daichi looks like he’s searching for something to say. Suga stares at him. 

“Kageyama’s right.” The tall man says. “And those are words I don’t use often. Listen, Your Highness,” And he flings the words across the room like a curse. “I understand that you rank above us, but your parents rank above _you_ , so when they tell you to stay put, well. _You have to stay put_.” His eyes are glinting with fury. 

“Tsukishima-,” Daichi attempts to speak, but this time, it’s Iwaizumi who interjects. 

“No.” He says, “Absolutely not. There is no excuse for this.” 

Suga can feel his jaw drop, and he turns to Daichi, who isn’t denying any of it. The Helnian crown didn’t approve his journey. 

It’s then, of course, when everybody’s glaring daggers at Daichi, that a small voice comes from the doorway, and Suga whips around, because he knows that voice.

“Hajime?” 

It’s Tooru. 

***

_When Suga is ten years old, Oikawa Tooru is sent to Miliwyn. His parents tell him that it will be a good thing, that Oikawa Tooru will be good for him, to meet another prince._

_Suga has never been convinced that that’s a good thing. Meeting another prince is not what he wants, it’s not what he’s asked for. Yui is enough, she’s all the friends he’ll ever need. Who cares about a foreign prince?_

_The day Oikawa Tooru is scheduled to show up, he’s late by four hours._

_When he finally arrives, Suga is in the kitchens, talking to Yui, who’s kneading bread dough and having him stir some sort of batter, since he doesn’t just want to be left standing. It’s awkward enough, but made worse by the fact that his arm is already sore. But he doesn’t want to go back to standing, so he keeps going until a woman approaches them._

_“Excuse me, Your Highness,” She says, tapping Suga’s shoulder, “The king and queen request your presence in the throne room.”_

_“Oh.” Suga sets the bowl down, and Yui abandons her dough to pick up where he’d left off. The other woman smiles at her._

_“It’s alright, Michimiya, I can get that for you,” She says, moving to collect the bowl. “Your Highness,” She adds, prompting Suga, who hasn’t moved from his spot._

_“Right,” He says, and waves Yui goodbye._

_He’s completely forgotten that someone was coming._

_When he enters the throne room, his parents are both standing in the middle of the room, and there’s another boy in between them. This has to be him._

_He’s got huge brown eyes, and his face is unevenly flushed, like he’s been crying. Suga’s parents are looking at him worriedly, and when Suga arrives, his mother rushes towards him._

_“Koushi!” She says, dragging the other boy behind her. “Here, take Tooru up to the South Tower, would you?” The entire court is watching her expectantly, and she stands up a bit straighter. Suga’s father is talking now, making some speech about ‘improving foreign relations’ and ‘the good of Miliwyn’ and ‘we must stand together’. The other boy looks slightly terrified._

_“Mother?” Suga looks up at her. “What’s going on?”_

_“Nothing, darling.” She looks around nervously. “Just...take Tooru to the South Tower.” Her voice is steady._

_“But-,”_

_“Now,” Sugawara Ayaka is not the most imposing of figures, but now, her tone is iron, and Suga knows it will be useless to argue. He leads the other boy away, and he sees his mother head back to his father’s side. The smile she’s wearing is big and bright and utterly fake._

_When they reach the corridor outside the throne room, the boy that Suga’s been leading slumps against a wall, shivering._

_“Um,” Suga says. “You must be Tooru.”_

_“Yes.” Tooru says softly. “That’s me.”_

_“My name’s Koushi,” Suga says, sticking out a hand, “But most people just call me Suga.”_

_Tooru doesn’t take his hand, doesn’t acknowledge it. He stays in that exact position, leaning on the wall, eyes huge and brimming with barely restrained tears._

_“Tooru?” Suga asks again._

_“What?” Tooru snaps, turning to face him for the first time. Shrinking back, Suga wonders if he’s made a mistake. It certainly seems so right now._

_Tooru is shaking, and tears are falling down his cheeks. He seems to be crumpling in on himself. There’s clearly a hurricane brewing inside him, but it’s invisible, and he’s imploding. Suga does the only thing he can think to do-he starts to talk._

_“Mother says I’m supposed to show you to the South Tower. It’s really nice there, I promise, and there’s a really nice view. We have really pretty gardens, and there’s all these flowers. The palace physician knows how to take some of them and turn them into medicine. I think, if I wasn’t a prince, I’d like to be a physician.” The words are tumbling out. “My friend says it’s crazy, because I am a prince, after all, but I think she’s wrong.”_

_Clearly, Tooru’s latched onto something in that mess, because he looks up, face still tearstained._

_“Yui always thinks really...uh, realistically of everything,” Suga continues, “She doesn’t think true love exists. At all. She thinks that people fall in love and they have, I don’t know, capability to fall out of love. All the time. I remember she told me once that you can fall out of love in a matter of minutes. But I think that there must be that one person that you never fall out of love with.”_

_“Yeah,” Tooru says weakly, “She seems really rational.”_

_“She is,” Suga nods sagely. “My parents say she’s a good influence.”_

_“My parents are dead,” Tooru says bluntly. “They died on the way here. We were attacked. They’re gone.”_

_Suga gapes at him._

_“Why haven’t you-,”_

_“Told anybody?” Tooru asks bleakly, “Because I don’t want to. Because I barely made it here alive and Mother and Father always thought this was a trap to begin with. But I don’t think you planned this.”_

_“I didn’t,” Suga says, “I promise I didn’t. My parents haven’t either, they haven’t. I don’t know who attacked you, but it wasn’t anyone here. I’m sorry about your family,” He adds tentatively._

_“They’re dead,” Tooru says again, as if to drive that point home, “But thank you.”_

_They stand in silence for a moment, and then Tooru straightens up, and gives Suga his first real smile. It’s not like Suga’s mother’s-it’s an honest-to-God smile and it lights the entire room up._

_“Okay.” Tooru says. “Where’s the South Tower?”_

_“It’s this way,” Suga replies. “Hey, Tooru?”_

_“Yeah?”_

_“Does this mean we’re friends?” Suga asks tentatively. “My only friend is Yui, because I’m cursed. Mother and Father say I’m cursed. Will you be my friend?”_

_Tooru looks at him for a long moment before holding out a hand solemnly. “I guess I am,” He says, and gives Suga a half-smile._

_They shake hands, and the deal is done._

_It’s the second deal that Suga’s made in his life, and he can’t help but think that it’s a much better deal than the last one._

***

Tooru is staring. 

“Tooru,” Suga says, and everybody except Tooru looks at him. “Tooru, this isn’t what it looks like, I didn’t know, Tooru-,” 

“Shut. Up.” Tooru whispers, all the blood drained out of his face. “Shut up, Koushi. Do not say another word.” 

Suga closes his mouth. 

“Sawamura,” Tooru says, and Daichi starts at the name. “Sawamura. Tell me I am hallucinating right now. What is his name?” He points at Iwaizumi. 

“I don’t know if you’re hallucinating,” Daichi says honestly, “But that man’s name is Iwaizumi Hajime.” 

Tooru backs into the door, looking utterly terrified. “No,” He whispers. “No, no, no. This is all wrong. You _died_.” The word is torn from his throat, and Suga is reminded of that first meeting, all those years ago. 

Iwaizumi looks lost, and Suga walks towards Tooru. 

“Daichi,” He says with as much calm as he can muster, “I need a word with Tooru. We’ll be back.” 

Daichi nods, and Kageyama glares at Tooru’s back as they turn around. 

As soon as they’re out in the hallway, Tooru whips around to face Suga. 

“Suga,” Tooru says, looking at him totally honestly. “Am I going crazy?” 

“Um.” Suga says. 

“Because,” Tooru continues, “I cannot think of another reason that Hajime would be in the South Tower. It has been one hundred years. He is _dead_. I was ready for him to be dead. I was ready to blame you for it, too.” 

“I don’t know.” Suga admits, “I have no idea why Iwaizumi is here. I have no idea why or how he ended up in Helnia.” 

“I mean, the curse was yours to deal with!” Tooru says, pacing. “It’s not like I….oh.” He goes very pale. “Koushi….,” He says, slowly, “Koushi, are faeries terribly vengeful?” 

“Absolutely,” Suga says, frowning. “There are some faeries that hold notorious grudges for years and years, especially since they’re immortal. Why do you ask?” 

“I pissed off a faerie,” Tooru blurts out. 

Suga stares at him for a moment. It’s not that he finds this hard to believe-on the contrary, he finds it remarkably easy to believe. Tooru has the kind of temperament that makes it very easy to piss people off. It’s the fact that a) Tooru has interacted with faeries, b) Tooru didn’t tell anybody that he’s interacted with faeries, and c) Tooru has managed to make a faerie so mad that it affected Iwaizumi as well. 

He doesn’t say any of this. 

“Pardon?” Is all he can think to say. 

“I didn’t-I just-,” Tooru is stammering now, running his hands through his hair. “Does he remember everything? He can’t remember everything, there’s no way. But then can we get his memories back? He doesn’t know who I am-he must have thought-,” 

“Stop!” Suga says forcefully, putting his hands on Tooru’s shoulders. “You need to calm down and tell me what happened. _Now_.” 

“I-,” Tooru starts, but Daichi appears at Suga’s side. 

“Suga?” He says uncertainly, and Suga lets go of Tooru. “I don’t know if I’m being presumptuous, but you seemed to know Iwaizumi. You too,” He adds, looking at Tooru, 

“And he’s from Helnia, and he’s, erm, younger than both of you, so I suppose-I suppose I’m wondering how you could possibly know him.” 

For a moment, there’s silence, and then Suga shoots Tooru a look that says _let me deal with this_. 

“We do.” He says, “Iwaizumi was Tooru’s best friend before the curse hit. He was a commoner. I knew him too, but not….personally.” 

“How?” Daichi asks, eyebrows knitting, and Suga knows somehow that he’s asking how it happened. 

“Faeries.” Suga says tiredly, because it’s the best explanation he can think up. “Faeries cursed me when I was younger. Faeries are responsible for this.” 

And then suddenly a thought bubbles up in his head. 

Faeries were responsible for Hitoka. 

“What does Hitoka have to do with this?” Tooru asks, and it’s only then that Suga realizes he’s said that out loud. 

“Nothing,” He says, as a germ of an idea starts to formulate in the back of his mind. “Absolutely nothing.” 

“I have to talk to Hajime,” Tooru says abruptly, “I know it’s odd, but I have to talk to him. I have to see if he remembers anything.” 

“Very well,” Daichi replies, and Tooru makes as though to open the door before Suga catches his wrist. 

“Don’t tell anybody,” He says in a low voice, so that Daichi can’t hear, “About the Helnians. Please.” 

Tooru’s eyes darken, and he nods, before slipping out of Suga’s grip and through the door. A moment later, he’s gone. Kageyama and Tsukishima exit the room a moment later. 

“Well, Your Highness,” Tsukishima drawls, dragging out the syllables in ‘Your Highness’, “That was exciting.” He glances around. 

“Yes,” Daichi sighs, “Yes it was. Suga, is there another place that they can hide?” 

“No,” Suga says, surprising himself a bit, but continuing, “We are taking both of you to my parents. _Now_. I am not taking responsibility for your appearance, nor is Daichi.  
I’ll try to get them tonight-they’re holding court currently. This is not open to discussion. In the meantime, Daichi, may I have a word? Alone?” 

Tsukishima smirks, but Suga ignores the implication and takes Daichi’s arm. He needs to talk to the other man in private, without Tsukishima’s smug looks and Kageyama’s slightly terrifying anger. Leading Daichi down a few corridors, he eventually stops, and turns to face him. 

“What on _earth_ ,” He says evenly, “Made you think it was a good idea to bring Helnians here?” 

“I didn’t-,” Daichi starts, but Suga holds up a hand, effectively cutting him off. 

“No.” He says, “You could have sent them back. You could have reported this to my parents, and made absolutely clear that they had no intent of harming anybody. Instead, you took the matter to me, and now if we reveal that they’re here, it will look like you’re conspiring against Miliwyn.” 

“It won’t.” Daichi says, frowning. 

“Yes, it will!” Suga nearly shouts. “Think about it. You kiss me-,” At these words, Suga’s face flushes, and he looks at the ground awkwardly, but he plows onward “Then a week later, only a few days before we’re to be married, your people show up, complete with full armor and full weaponry, and conceal their appearance. Doesn’t that look suspicious? Doesn’t that look like you’re going to, I don’t know, plot some sort of assassination, against the royal family? We are about to get married, after all! You could inherit a whole other kingdom! Daichi, this is a mess!” For Suga, who has always been about structure and planning and _foresight_ , dammit, this is a repeat of the curse.

Everything is falling. 

Except at least with the curse, he could do something about it. 

It’s only when he tastes copper and iron against the roof of his mouth that he realizes that he’s bitten through his lower lip. 

“Suga,” Daichi says, taking his shoulders and looking him in the eyes, “ _Koushi_.” 

Something warm spreads through Suga at the sound of his name on Daichi’s lips, and he looks up to meet Daichi’s eyes, dark brown and steady. Daichi is looking at him with something indecipherable in his gaze, but it’s gone before Suga can examine it more closely. He looks at Suga, and Suga looks back, and suddenly, he’s very aware of Daichi’s hands on his shoulders and their proximity. 

They stand like that, frozen, for just a moment, and Suga wonders what would happen if he leaned in just a little closer. 

And then he remembers that they’re not in love, and he has blood on his lips and he’s supposed to be mad. 

Suga’s the first to break away. It’s awkward, and Daichi quickly removes his hands from his shoulders. There’s a layer of tension in the room that wasn’t there before, and Suga hates it. 

“Anyway,” Daichi says softly, and clears his throat, “It’s going to be fine. We can say they got here just now.” 

Suga looks down at the ground. “I guess,” He says, and looks up, plastering a smile on his face. 

It’s something his mother taught him as a child. Not the smiling, specifically, but knowing how to switch on and off certain feelings and appearances like he was pulling a lever. 

“It’s a useful skill, Koushi,” She’d say, “You need to be in control of your emotions, especially in your position. You need to know what you’re saying. You need to know what your face is projecting. You need to be able to control that.” 

He remembers practicing with her, and he remembers trying to tell which of her smiles were real, and which ones were her artificial creations. 

Now, he only hopes that the grin that he’s putting out looks realistic. It must, because Daichi gives him a smile in return. 

That’s all right. That’s the normal response. 

The only people who have ever been able to see through the fake smile are his mother and Yui. And that’s fine. That’s enough. 

Except it’s not. 

***

Suga decides to approach his mother, because at this point, it’s probably the safer option. Ayaka has always been more flexible and loose than her husband. 

“Mother!” He catches her on her way back from the gardens. The sun is setting and the sky is painted with streaks of pink and gold.  
She turns around, eyes wide and hand pressed to her chest. 

“Oh,” She says, “Koushi. You startled me.” 

“I apologize,” He replies, “But I do have something to tell you. Daichi’s guard has arrived-they came in not twenty minutes ago.” 

His mother frowns. “Really?” She says, “Well, I suppose it’s not too unusual. Very well. Show me to them.” Already, her back is straightening, she’s whipping out her false smile, and smoothing her skirt down. Sugawara Ayaka is setting down her role as mother, and picking up her role as queen. 

“I’m glad you came to me, and not your father,” She says as they walk downstairs, “Really, he wouldn’t be too happy about having foreigners here, but it’s for the best. Which reminds me, dear, your fitting is tomorrow. Come to my chambers after breakfast, and we’ll sort it all out then.” 

“My fitting for what?” 

She sighs, as though she’s told him a thousand times before (and perhaps she has). Suga is used to this look. It’s the look that says _honestly, Sugawara, we have to tell you again?_ It’s a look that says, _we expect better._

“Your wedding,” She says, clearly irritated, “On Thursday?” 

“Oh,” Suga says, trying to summon up some cheer and failing, “Right. The wedding.” 

“Yes.” His mother says, turning to him. “The wedding. You’re getting married, Koushi. How on earth could you forget something like your own wedding?” She chuckles a little, but there’s underlying exasperation in her tone. 

“I didn’t forget,” Suga says, and opens a door for her. “We’re here.” 

Iwaizumi, Kageyama, and Tsukishima are standing in the South Tower. Daichi has his back to them and only turns around when Suga clears his throat. Tooru has left, thankfully, and Suga watches Iwaizumi carefully, but the other man doesn’t seem to have changed in any drastic way. 

“Your Majesty,” Suga says, bowing, and she steps into the room. Immediately, all four of them bow, although Kageyama bows lower than any of them, and Tsukishima’s bow is closer to an inclination of his head. 

“You may rise,” She says. In that moment, Suga’s mother is authoritative, stately, everything you would expect from a queen. “I understand that you’ve arrived to assist your prince.” She smiles at Daichi. 

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Iwaizumi says, “If we may be permitted to remain here.” 

“Of course, of course,” She says, waving a hand as though it’s not a large concern, and Kageyama looks somewhat relieved. 

“Thank you,” Iwaizumi bows again, and she laughs, albeit a little nervously. Iwaizumi is intimidating, even without meaning to be.

“It’s no trouble. Really. We’ll just have you stay in the South Tower, since you already-oh, damn, Tooru is here, isn’t he?”

“Yes,” Suga says. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Iwaizumi stiffen. 

“Well-hm.” His mother looks around. “Don’t we have that vacant room just below the South Tower? Koushi?” 

“I think so.” Suga replies, “But really, they can just-,” 

“That’ll do.” She says. “A bit dusty, perhaps, but we can have the maids clean it up. There aren’t any windows, but surely that isn’t a problem….” She lets the sentence trail off, looking for objection and finding none. “Excellent! Alright. We’ll move you down there tonight, and if you need anything, well, Koushi’s a bit farther down, but nothing unmanageable. And then, of course, Tooru is above you.” 

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Iwaizumi says, “You are as gracious as you are beautiful.” 

The queen laughs, and this time it’s real. “Goodness.” She says. “All right.” And she exits the room, muttering something about telling his father. 

As Suga leads the Helnians to the spare room, he entertains the idea he’s been trying to entertain the whole day. The one about Hitoka.  
If she’s in Fey territory, like he thinks she is, then there might be a way for him to get her back. An exchange. He can bring her home, and even if he won’t get to see their reactions, it will be better than anything he managed to do today. It will work. It has to work. He knows the rules of the deal he made, but he also knows that there might be a loophole that he can exploit. Making another deal isn’t ideal, but it might be all that he can do.

After all, the Fey do love to bargain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter killed me a little bit, but IT'S UP!  
> (next week Yachi finally appears!)  
> 


	5. Dawn

It’s the morning of his wedding, and Suga is nervous. 

He’s been planning this day for the entire week, although not in the same way that his parents have been planning it. While they’ve been asking about flowers, he’s spent most of his time in the stables, talking to Shouyou about horses. While they’ve been asking the seamstresses when his clothes will be finished, he’s been in the library, looking at books about the Fey, and Faerie. While they’ve been down at the kitchen asking about cake, he’s been down at the kitchen asking about how long food will keep. 

Suga has been planning the entire day for a week, and he’s become paranoid on the day, jumping every time somebody comes around the bend of a corridor, or approaches him about his mood. 

“You should relax,” Yui tells him quietly in the kitchens, “It’ll all go much faster if you just relax.” 

“I can’t focus,” Suga says, wringing his hands. He knows he looks like a wreck, but he doesn’t care, in that moment. He’s supposed to be getting married today. His parents expect a ball afterwards. 

He won’t be around for the ball, though. 

“I know,” Yui says sympathetically, putting down her bowl full of frosting for a moment to put a hand on his shoulder, “I know. But you have to. Do you want to stay down here and watch me frost your wedding cake?” 

“Yes,” Suga says, relieved, and follows her over to the four layers of cake, stacked on top of each other. Yui takes a spoon and scoops some white frosting onto the first tier, spreading it out. There’s another woman standing on a ladder, and frosting the top layer. Suga watches the movements of the knife. Up and down, smoothing the surface until it’s flawless. 

“Talk to me,” Yui says as she leans over to cover a corner, “Have you sorted things out with Tooru?” 

“I suppose,” Suga says with a sigh, “He’s started talking to me, since it turns out that what happened to Iwaizumi wasn’t my fault. Though I’m still not clear as to what he did in the first place to make it so that Iwaizumi is alive.” 

“Faeries,” Yui replies, shrugging, and dipping the spoon back into the bowl, “They’re odd. And tricky. For all we know, Tooru could have said that a faerie’s hair looked funny, and he’s probably be doomed for life. He has a way of making people upset.” 

“That’s true,” Suga says, relaxing a little bit. Yui finishes with her side of the cake, and hands him the spoon to lick as she carries the empty bowl to the sinks. 

“Exactly.” Yui says. “It’ll be fine. Trust me. It’s just a title. You won’t be married in anything other than name. It doesn’t say that you have to love him forever because he woke everybody up. Please, try to think rationally, Koushi.” 

“I am,” Suga says, trying to convince himself, but the protest sounds weak to even his ears. “I’m thinking rationally.” 

He isn’t. He’s thinking about how he’s going to get out after the wedding. 

“No, you aren’t,” Yui says, sighing. “Suga, just go upstairs. You could look at your wedding clothes, or go to the battlements, or-God forbid-talk to your fiancé.” 

“Are you joking?” Suga asks, looking at her. 

“No.” Yui says, clearly irritated now, “Go talk to Sawamura-san. You’re not to come back downstairs to the kitchen for the rest of the day.” 

“You’re impossible,” Suga groans, but he complies, leaving the kitchens. He doesn’t go to see Daichi, though-he goes to the stables to see Shouyou. 

“Suga-san!” Shouyou calls out, waving energetically from where he’s brushing a horse’s coat. “Good morning!” 

“Good morning, Shouyou,” Suga says. 

“Your wedding is today, Suga-san!” Shouyou says excitedly, as though Suga’s forgotten about this little detail. “You’re getting married!” 

“Yes,” Suga says, “And I don’t want to talk about it. Tell me about the horses. Please.” He adds, feeling slightly self-conscious. 

“Okay.” Shouyou says, looking confused, “What about them?” 

“What are their names?” 

“Well, I let Natsu name this particular one,” Shouyou says, gesturing to the one he’s been brushing, a gorgeous palomino, “Her name is Sunshine! I think it’s got a nice ring to it, anyway.” 

“Sunshine,” Suga echoes the name, “She’s beautiful.” 

“Yeah,” Shouyou agrees, “Yeah, she is.” 

“Shouyou,” Suga asks suddenly, “What would you do if Natsu was taken away from you?” 

“What?” Shouyou asks, his face draining of blood, “Natsu’s been taken? By who?” 

“No!” Suga says, “God, no. Natsu is fine. It’s a hypothetical question. _If_ Natsu was taken. What would you do?”   
“I’d go after her!” Shouyou replies fiercely, “I would find the people that took her and I would make. Them. Pay. She’s my only family, Suga. She’s the only person I have left. If she was taken by someone, _anyone,_ I would do _whatever it took_ to get her back.” He snaps out of his trance-like state. “Why do you ask?” 

“No reason,” Suga says, thinking of Hitoka, thinking of his plan, thinking of tonight, all with a sinking feeling, “No reason at all.” 

***

“Sugawara?” Daichi says, knocking on his bedroom door. “Suga?” 

Suga looks up from the ring he’s turning over in his hands, over and over and over again. Daichi’s face is polite, and Suga returns his gaze to the ring. It’s a gold color, and fairly plain-a wedding band. 

“Did you need something?” He asks. 

“Just a few moments of your time,” Daichi says, “May I?” 

“I suppose.” Suga says, gesturing him inside. Daichi sits next to him on the bed, and looks down at the ring that Suga is handling loosely. 

“Listen,” Daichi begins, “I know that this wedding is the last thing that you want.” 

“Why do you think that, Daichi?” Suga asks, sliding the ring on and off of his ring finger slowly and deliberately. 

“You’ve said as much,” Daichi returns, “And in any case, I could have guessed. You’re remarkably unenthusiastic about the entire endeavor. But anyways, I just wanted to tell you that if you don’t want it to, it doesn’t have to mean anything. It doesn’t have to be a traditional marriage. You don’t have to pretend. At least, not for me.” 

“Oh?” Suga says, finally taking his gaze off the wedding ring to look at Daichi. “I don’t have to pretend? Daichi, let’s not sugarcoat it-we will always have to pretend. Always. I guarantee you, each and every day, in this marriage, you will not say something you don’t truly believe or mean. That has nothing to do with my feelings for you, or yours for me-it is simply because of our positions. I appreciate the sentiment, but you cannot uphold it.” 

“I can,” Daichi says fiercely, and he takes the wedding ring from Suga, “I can and I will. Sugawara Koushi, you are a remarkable person. I look forward to upholding that sentiment each and every day of this marriage. I will not pretend for you. And I certainly hope that you will not pretend for me.” 

Suga looks at him out of the corner of one eye. 

“Daichi,” He says, “You are fascinating.” 

Daichi flushes, and Suga smiles despite himself, which makes the other man’s face go even redder. 

“You are fascinating,” He repeats, “And you are thoroughly enjoyable when you are caught off-guard.” 

Daichi sputters, and Suga laughs, the sound echoing through the room. He doesn’t remember the last time he’s laughed, really laughed.

“I may not be looking forward to the wedding,” He says, “But I will look forward to the hours that I can spend as your friend, instead of your spouse.” 

Daichi smiles, and Suga thinks that it’s been nice, having another person to talk to, even if his relationship with that person might be ruined tonight permanently.

***

The wedding is quiet, as the tradition of their people goes, and also as was Suga’s one request. 

It’s nearly silent in the room. The priest reads quietly, and his parents stand there, as witnesses. His mother smiles at him once or twice during the ceremony. His father remains stoic as ever, not saying a word or making any noise or movement. 

As they near the end of the ceremony, Suga can feel himself tensing up. He knows what happens at the end. Everybody in the room knows what has to happen at the end. 

Suga hands Daichi the ring he’s been spinning in his hands the entire time, and Daichi hands Suga the ring that Suga slides onto his slightly shaking finger. 

Daichi leans forward, and kisses Suga softly on the lips. Suga knows he’s probably trembling and pale. He knows that he feels slightly nauseous. He knows that he’s leaving in less than twenty minutes. 

It’s their second kiss, and Suga thinks that at least both of them are awake this time. 

Daichi draws back, and they’re married. 

***

Suga is sitting with Tooru to the side, watching everybody dance, because, naturally, everybody has been invited to the ball. His parents are extravagant. 

“Parties,” Tooru says dryly, “They’ve rather lost appeal, at least for me.” 

“Why is that?” Suga asks absently, trying to think of how much more time he has left in the ballroom. 

“Pettiness, mostly,” Tooru says, with a self-deprecating laugh. “We were asleep for a hundred years. Our entire lives had changed. In some ways, being asleep was a blessing-we had no awareness of our surroundings or our lives. Dreams can be kinder than reality, even if those dreams are nightmares. And most of the people here experienced none of that. Whether they’re from Miliwyn or Helnia,” He adds. 

“How did it go with Iwaizumi?” Suga asks, remembering that Tooru has talked to him before. 

“Oh, fine,” Tooru says, tilting his head upwards, “Hajime doesn’t really want anything to do with me, but everything is fine.” 

“Tooru,” Suga says, unsure of what he can say or do, but Tooru doesn’t give him the chance to figure it out in the first place. 

“I told him, Koushi,” He says, looking back down at his hands, which are fiddling furiously with each other, long fingers twisting and untwisting around each other, “I told him everything. I told him too much.” 

“That’s not true,” Suga replies firmly. “Tooru, that’s not _true_.” 

“Yes, it is.” Tooru says, “Do you know what I said, Koushi? I told him the story of his life. I told him about his mother, about his father. I told him about me. I said that I entered his life in a time when I needed him. It’s not a lie, either.” He adds contemplatively, “I told him about us, about you and I. That day we all spent in the South Tower, in my rooms, where he’s staying now. We played Hide and Seek and I got lost. You remember, don’t you? I got lost, and Hajime found me, because Hajime has always found me, and I thought he always would. I thought the one thing that we’d always have was each other. I lost my parents, and I told myself I would never care about anybody ever again. I shut myself out. But then Hajime came and I started to care again. It was never intentional. I told him everything I just told you, and more. I told him not enough and too much in one go.” 

“How on earth could you have told him too much?” Suga asks, “You told him about his past, which is what he needs to hear. Maybe he will remember if he’s told about the past.” 

“I told him I was in love with him,” Tooru says bleakly, “It was true back then and it’s true now. He didn’t need to hear that. I had never intended to tell him in the first place, even before the curse. I was ready for him to be dead. He does not even remember me now, and it’s because I went and picked a fight with someone who was not to be trifled with.” 

Suga is silent, because what can he say? Tooru keeps talking, and his next words are forced out of his mouth, the same as the bitter ones he’d thrown at Suga what feels like ages ago when he blamed him for all the death and pain. Only this time, the bitterness is directed inwards, at Tooru himself.

“Everything that has happened to Hajime is because of me. He should hate me. He should loathe and despise me. But he doesn’t even remember me. And I’ve ruined everything. He has a life. He’s probably married. He probably hates me, but not for the reasons he should. All he knows is his life now. Maybe that’s a blessing. You tell me, Sugawara.” 

“Tooru?” Suga says, after a silence. There’s silence next to him, and Suga realizes that Tooru is crying. The tears are dripping down his cheeks, but he’s completely silent. 

“Tooru,” He says, with more uncertainty than before, “I don’t think you did the wrong thing.” 

“How can I have?” Tooru asks, and his voice is broken. 

“You told him his past,” Suga says, “And that’s what he needs right now. You told him your feelings, which is what _you_ need right now. And you need to keep talking to him. Iwaizumi was never the type to hate people. He probably still isn’t. You need to tell him everything. And when I say everything, I mean everything. Faerie curses are usually only temporary.” 

Tooru raises an eyebrow at him. The tears have nearly stopped flowing. 

“Usually,” Suga says, exasperated, “I am an exception. Promise me you’ll talk to him, Tooru. Promise me.” 

“I promise,” Tooru says reluctantly, “But if it goes horribly wrong, I will hold you accountable by all and any means.” 

“It won’t go wrong.” Suga says. 

They sit in silence for another moment, and then Tooru stands up. 

“I am going to join the dance floor,” He says, “As even a hundred years does not put a damper on my dazzling charm and excellent dancing skills.” He gives Suga a wink. 

“How do I look?” 

“Like a prince,” Suga says, holding back a smile. 

“I ought to,” Tooru says, “As that’s what I am. Good luck, Suga.” And he disappears into the crowd. 

Suga looks up at his parents. They’re distracted, talking to somebody who’s blocked from view currently. Shouyou is standing in the corner, dancing with Natsu, who looks happier than Suga’s ever seen her. Tooru is pointedly avoiding Iwaizumi, who’s standing next to Tsukishima. They both look uncomfortable. Daichi is…..

Daichi is nowhere to be found. 

“Looking for me?” A voice says at his shoulder, and Suga jumps, spilling wine all over his sleeve as someone familiar laughs quietly. 

“No,” Suga hisses, annoyed, and trying to clean the wine off of his sleeve. 

“That’s not coming out, you know,” Daichi says looking at the outfit. “And it really is a shame. You looked so nice in that outfit.” 

“Shut up,” Suga says, giving Daichi a little push. “And here I thought you were supposed to be on your best behavior for tonight.” 

“I’m supposed to be,” Daichi replies, “But you’re too fun to rile up.” And he smiles. “If I may?” He asks, offering Suga his arm. 

Suga is somewhat surprised by the fact that he wants to take it. 

But he can’t. 

“I apologize,” He says, “I have a matter I must attend to elsewhere.” 

“I understand,” Daichi replies, but there’s disappointment in his eyes. 

Suga flees before he can change his mind. 

He heads down the stables, heart pounding, and jumping at even the slightest noise as he runs, escaping the party. Escaping a marriage. 

But it isn’t for him-it’s for Hitoka. 

“Going somewhere, Your Highness?” A voice says behind him, and Suga nearly shouts, spinning around to face Kageyama Tobio. 

Kageyama, whom he’d completely forgotten about. 

“Kageyama!” He says, trying to regain some sort of composure, and laughing nervously, “You should be celebrating!” 

“I could say the same to you,” Kageyama says, and takes a step forward, “After all, it’s your wedding night. Shouldn’t you be celebrating? What on earth would possess you to abandon the party?” 

“I have a matter to take care of,” Suga replies stiffly, “And I would appreciate you stepping aside and letting me pass.” 

“I can’t do that, Your Highness,” Kageyama says, “When you look suspiciously like you’re planning to run away.” 

Suga takes a step backwards. “Maybe I should rephrase that. I am ordering you to step aside, Kageyama-san. _Now_.” 

“I can’t do that,” Kageyama repeats. “I can’t allow you to run away.” 

“I am not running away,” Suga hisses, fed up, “I am doing something for the good of the kingdom. I am doing this so that someone very important to me can find peace. I am not doing this so that I can get away from my husband. If I did, I would have left much earlier. Kageyama-san, I am not asking you to trust me. I am asking you to believe me.” 

Kageyama studies him for what feels like an eternity. And then he steps aside. 

“If you just lied to me,” He says, his low voice a promise, “I will do whatever it takes to find you, and I will bring you back here. Because you mean something to His Highness. And he will not be letting you go easily.” 

“Thank you,” Suga replies, and he runs.

He find Sunshine, who’s already saddled and ready-probably unintentional, but Suga sends a small prayer of thanks to Shouyou. Shouyou, who’s still at the ball with Natsu, who’s safe. 

He thinks one more time of turning back, of going back to the ball and brushing everything off, laughing, saying that he was just preoccupied earlier. 

Then he thinks of Hitoka, and every other idea flees from his head.

***

Suga has been riding Sunshine for hours, and he’s sore, but nearly there, which is good, because the sun will come out soon, and he doesn’t want to be riding by daylight. It will only make it easier to find him. 

He passes hills and valleys, the green darkened by night. He passes villages, and pulls up his hood to hide his face. The villagers look at him strangely, but he’s gone in a moment, never staying. Sunshine is fast, which is going to be good, because no doubt by now, his parents have noticed he’s missing. 

He doesn’t feel terribly bad about abandoning his husband-at least, that’s what he tells himself as he rides. He and Daichi don’t have anything, and they won’t have anything. That’s the way it has to be. That way, everything will be easier. 

I’m doing this for Hitoka, not for myself, is what he tells himself, because it is easier than admitting that he is selfish. 

Until he reaches the lake. 

It’s big, and glassy, and Suga looks at it for a long time before dismounting Sunshine and tentatively stepping onto the surface, putting one foot on and testing it.   
The water is solid underneath his feet. 

Suga has read about this-about the entrance to Faerie. 

He knows that there’s a single spot that’s purely water in the entire lake. Nobody has ever returned from it. 

Hitoka will. 

Sunshine is still at the edge of the water, and though she’s silent, Suga swears that he can see the worry written in her features. A moment later, he shakes his head and keeps walking. The morning is warm, and the lake looks like ice. 

Until he finally finds the one spot where it isn’t solid. 

It’s an accident-his foot finds the place, and he falls, instantly, down and down and down, the water closing above his head. The blue of the lake turns to black, and the black sweeps away his thoughts. 

***

When Suga wakes up, he’s dripping wet, freezing, and on a bed next to a woman with long, dark hair and grey eyes. 

“Sugawara Koushi,” The woman says, eyes narrowed, “I know you.” 

Suga has never met this woman in his life. He doesn’t know why or how he is where he is. Perhaps she’s Fey. Then again, perhaps she’s just a kind woman who chose to save him from drowning. 

“My lady,” He says, “I am in your debt.” 

“Yes, you are,” She agrees, “For more than one reason.” 

Rising, she goes to the window in his room and throws it open, letting light stream in. It’s not the golden light of sunrise or noon, though. This light is a million different colors, and it glitters like water in sunlight. It is not light that’s found in the human world. 

“You’re awake,” The woman says, “Therefore we can try you now.” 

“Try me?” Suga says, sitting up, “Try me for what?” 

“For entering our lands unannounced,” She says, “We had received no word that the humans were willing to consort with us again, especially after what we took.” 

“They are not,” Suga says, swallowing hard. “I came alone, and without any permission granted by any royal family.” 

“Is that so?” The woman muses, “That makes you interesting. But we still must have a trial.” 

“My lady,” Suga says again, but she holds up a hand. 

“Not ‘My lady’,” She says, holding her head up high, “‘My Queen’. Even if I am not the royalty that you bow to, I am royalty. And no doubt I am more powerful than your entire kingdom. You are a prince, aren’t you?” 

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Suga replies. 

“Yet you say you came alone.” She looks at him again, tapping a finger against her chin, “You truly are fascinating. However, laws are laws. Surely you know how it goes. No matter how interesting you are, you are in Faerie now, Sugawara Koushi. And as long as you remain down here, you will play by our rules.”

The woman gestures to the door, but Suga stays where he is. 

“You are Shimizu Kiyoko,” He says carefully, “I’ve read about you. The Queen of Faerie.” 

“That is correct.” The woman says. She sounds generally disinterested now, but Suga is not letting this opportunity go. 

“My Queen,” He says, “You are-,” 

“I know what you intended to say,” Shimizu Kiyoko replies, “You would be incorrect. I am not gracious or benevolent. I have a kingdom to run, Sugawara, exactly the same as you. I have a duty to my people.” 

“Please,” Suga begs, “Let me see Yachi Hitoka.” 

This stops her at the door 

“Pardon?” Shimizu says. 

“Let me see Yachi Hitoka.” Suga repeats, “Is she alive? Have you killed her? We gave her to you to do as you liked-please tell me she is alive.” 

“She is alive,” Shimizu sounds puzzled by his request, “But why do you wish to see her?” 

“She is my friend,” Suga looks at the ground, “And I came all this way to exchange my life for hers.” 

Shimizu looks at him for a long, long moment. 

“I shall grant your request,” She says, “I shall send Yachi Hitoka in. But you are not to leave this room. Two guards are stationed outside.” 

“Thank you,” Suga breathes, “Thank you.” 

“Do not thank me just yet,” Shimizu replies. 

“My Queen!” He says, remembering the human world, “One more question.” 

“Yes?” Shimizu says tiredly. “What is your question, Sugawara?” 

“Have any of your people ever met a man named Oikawa Tooru?” Suga asks. He remembers Tooru at the ball, remembers the look of despair on his face. Although Tooru can be tricky, he is a good person at heart. But Shimizu doesn’t seem to care about any of this. She stiffens. 

“Yes,” She says, “They have. It was not a pleasant experience, as I recall, but nevertheless, he assured me years ago that it was not a matter of importance, that someone had acted for him in vengeance.” 

“Who was it?” Suga asks. 

“Ushijima Wakatoshi was the faerie who had the encounter,” Shimizu says curtly, “And this is not a matter I will discuss with you any further. If you wish to pursue this, you must take it up with Ushijima himself.” 

With these words, she leaves, shutting the door quietly. The room is silent, and Suga turns the name over and over in his mind. 

Ushijima Wakatoshi. 

The door swings open again a few moments later, though, and Suga completely forgets about Ushijima Wakatoshi, because there’s somebody else in front of him, somebody very, very familiar. 

“Hitoka!” He cries out, and she bursts into tears. 

“Your Highness,” She sobs, “Your Highness, you should never have come here. How could you be so _stupid_?” 

“I-what?” Suga freezes in his tracks. 

“Now they’re going to keep you down here forever!” Hitoka wails, “And it’s all my fault! If I’d just been a better-,” 

“Hitoka!” Suga says, “None of that was your fault!” 

“Yes, it was.” Hitoka says, “And now Shimizu is going to keep you down here forever. I can’t get you out now!” 

“Why?” Suga says, his eyes narrowing. “I came to make an exchange.” 

“No,” Hitoka instantly backs away, “No, you are most certainly not allowed to do that. Her Majesty told me as much. I know what exchange you want to make, because you are a good person. But I can't let you do that. If I am not willing, you cannot go through with it.” 

“I have to,” Suga says, “You have to go back to your life, Hitoka, because it’s my fault you had to stay down here in the first place.” 

“I don’t mind it down here,” Hitoka confesses softly, “It’s not as bad as the stories make it sound. The Fey are kind, even if they don’t seem that way.” 

“Kind?” Suga says, brow furrowing, “They stole you!” 

“They also made sure you didn’t die!” Hitoka shoots back, “Think about it, Your Highness. You were to die when you pricked your finger. Because of Shimizu, among others, you did not. The Queen of Faerie herself was interested in you living. Think about that.” 

“I understand,” Suga says, “But I am getting you out of here. Your mother is worried sick. You had a life.” 

“Your Highness,” Hitoka says, “I know you want to help me, but there is no way for you to. You cannot do this. Shimizu will not let you.” 

“She has to,” Suga says fiercely, “I am getting you out of here.” 

“I want to go back, Sugawara.” Hitoka says, “I do. But I won’t let you trade yourself for me. You would need me to agree for this to work-that is written in the deal that the Queen of Faerie agreed to. And we are in Faerie, Your Highness. As you’ve probably heard by now,” And here she offers a weak smile, “Here, we play by their rules.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Early update! also, no chapter next week, since I will be in a no-internet zone. I promise after this we'll be back to normal update schedule, though. thanks for sticking with me!


	6. Noon

Faerie is a nightmare. 

Not on the outside, of course. On the outside, it’s a glittering facade, shining castles and lakes that mirror the sky flawlessly. Everything about Faerie is flawless, and no matter how hard Suga tries to find something that’s less than perfect, the more frustrated he becomes. It doesn’t help that Hitoka is completely enamoured with the place. 

She walks like she knows it, like she’s been here her entire life. Several times a day, Suga finds himself thinking of Tooru’s words, about how Hitoka had been screaming when they woke up, and he tries to connect that Hitoka, the one that he knows, with the one that he’s in Faerie with. 

Speaking of Hitoka, they still haven’t sent her back to the human world. 

Whenever he asks Shimizu about it, she looks at him distastefully and turns back to whomever she’s been speaking with prior to his interruption. 

Finally, to put the cap on it all, the Fey are _cold._

It’s not one huge thing that they’ve done. It’s very evident though, that they’re not too keen on having not one, but two humans in their realm. 

It’s evident in the looks that Shimizu’s guards give him when he walks down to meet her in the throne room. It’s evident in the way that the twin eagles by her side give him baleful looks through wary eyes. It’s evident in the hushed whispers behind his and Hitoka’s backs. 

They’re unwelcome. 

When Suga confronts Shimizu about it, she merely raises one eyebrow. 

“Unwelcome?” She responds. “Unwelcome, you say. I disagree, Sugawara-I think my people are showing remarkable restraint. You do not know how many wanted you dead when you first dropped down here with no warning.” 

“Dead?” Suga asks, somewhat taken aback. 

“Dead.” Shimizu says, perfectly calmly. “Faeries have claws, Sugawara. They are not currently in the process of showing them off.” One of the eagles caws, and flies down to her shoulder, and she strokes it, moving the other hand around the tap it gently on the side of the head. The other regards him from her throne.

“And Hitoka?” The eagle is looking at him with something gleaming in its eyes, and Suga doesn’t like it one bit. “What of her situation?” 

“Yachi Hitoka is under my protection,” Shimizu snaps, and the birds both leap off of her throne. “Now leave us, _Koushi._ ” She sneers the last word, as though his name is a curse. “I don’t think you have any more business to conduct with me. _Leave._ ” 

“What did you do to her?” Suga voices what he’s been thinking the entire time. “What did you do to Hitoka?” 

“This is the last time I will tell you.” The Queen of Faerie warns him, “Leave me. Now.” 

“You’ve cursed her,” Suga guesses, “You’ve cursed her, and now she’s-,” 

Shimizu snaps her fingers, the sound cutting off the rest of Suga’s sentence and the eagles are gone, replaced by two men. The first, is a stoic-looking man with gold-green eyes. The second has vividly red hair and long limbs. The one with green eyes looks at him with a neutral expression, and the red-haired man is looking at Suga as though he’s a rabbit.

“My Queen,” He drawls, “Do you wish him gone?” 

“Yes.” Shimizu says, her voice colder than ice. “Escort him from the throne room, Tendou. I have business to conduct.” 

“Very well,” The man says, still smirking, and he takes Suga’s arm. The other faerie takes his other arm, and they drag him outside forcefully. 

“You tried Shimizu’s patience,” The red haired one-Tendou, Shimizu had called him- muses, “You’re quite interesting. Normally she doesn’t get that mad.” 

“Yes, she does.” The other says. “She’s very defensive.”

“Shush, Wakatoshi.” Tendou says, looking at the other. Suga thinks that there’s something familiar about the name, though he can’t quite place it. 

“Why?” Wakatoshi asks. It’s a bit remarkable that his expression remains the exact same, despite infliction and the way he tilts his head towards Tendou. 

“You want to rile them up!” Tendou encourages, looking at Suga. “You want to instill fear in their hearts, don’t you?” 

“No.” Wakatoshi says flatly, “I would rather not, especially after what happened a century ago.” 

“That was a century ago.” Tendou sighs. “And we exacted vengeance.” 

“ _You_ exacted vengeance.” Wakatoshi corrects. 

“Tooru!” Suga blurts out, because that’s where Wakatoshi is from. He’s the person that took Iwaizumi. Or, rather, it seems that Tendou did. “You’re the ones that had the run-in with Tooru!” 

“I believe that was his name, yes.” Wakatoshi says, “Oikawa Tooru. He bragged rather voraciously about his name. And his title.” He adds after a pause. “He claimed to be a prince.” 

“He is a prince.” Suga stammers. It’s hard not to stumble over his words when these faeries are the ones that kidnapped a human and wiped his memories for over a century. Or something. He still isn’t quite sure what happened to Iwaizumi. 

“Is he?” Wakatoshi asks, sounding on the whole disinterested, “In any case, it was a century ago. Such things do not matter now.” 

“They do!” Suga exclaims, “They do! You ruined Iwaizumi’s life!” 

“Iwaizumi….” Tendou tilts his head back for a long time, and Suga bites his lower lip hard. “Iwaizumi…..Wakatoshi, you remember an Iwaizumi?” 

“Yes.” Wakatoshi says, voice neutral, and in that moment, Suga has never wanted to scream more than he does now. “He was the one you removed the memories from.” 

“Oh!” Tendou snaps his fingers, the sound sharp in the quiet hallway. “Him. It wasn’t hard. And Oikawa Tooru was a snob. I rather enjoyed it.” He smirks. 

“You _enjoyed_ it.” Suga whispers, “You _enjoyed_ ruining somebody’s life.” 

“Don’t be so dramatic,” Tendou says, waving a hand. “I gave him another. The more pressing issue is why you dislike Her Majesty with such a passion, and why she returns that dislike tenfold.” 

“She doesn’t-,” Suga starts, but Wakatoshi cuts him off. 

“Yes, she does. I am uncertain as to why, but she dislikes you.” He says, tilting his head to one side, “Which is unusual for Her Majesty.” 

“Oh, does she normally tend to like humans?” Suga snorts. 

“She likes Hitoka-chan well enough,” Tendou smirks, and Suga looks at him for a moment, confused. 

“Hitoka?” 

“Her Majesty has taken a particular interest in Hitoka,” Wakatoshi confirms. 

“Inter-oh my God.” It clicks in Suga’s mind, and he stumbles backward a few steps. “Interest.”

“Yes.” Wakatoshi says, looking at him curiously. 

“ _The Queen of Faerie wants to court one of my best friends_ ,” Suga chokes out, and it feels so surreal to have that particular piece of knowledge in his arsenal. Goddamn. 

“Is that what humans call it?” Tendou studies his nails, which Suga realizes with a start are long and pointed. “I rather enjoyed seeing Her Majesty have a particular interest in anybody, regardless of what it’s called. She doesn’t usually take to other beings.” 

“Hitoka.” Suga is still numb. “Does Hitoka _know?_ ” 

“I honestly can’t figure out whether you’re naturally this dense or this is just really good acting,” Tendou stares at him in disbelief. “Yes, Yachi Hitoka _knows._ Why do you think she’s been so distant with _you?_ Why do you think she made up some half-assed excuse to not go back?” 

“ _What?_ ” Suga asks, nothing short of horrified. “It was an excuse?” 

“Look, Sugawara,” Tendou says, clearly exasperated, “You need to talk to your friend. But I am not going to be a go-between. We were only supposed to bring you outside to keep from distracting Her Majesty.” 

“We’ve done that.” Wakatoshi points out. 

“Indeed we have.” Tendou’s eyes are glinting. “I think it’s time to bid our esteemed guest goodbye.” He waves, and pries the door to the throne room back open. “After you, Wakatoshi.” 

“Goodbye.” Wakatoshi says to Suga. “I do hope you find what you’re looking for soon.” His tone is the same as it’s been the entire time-neutral, blank. 

“I’m not looking for anything.” Suga calls, completely bewildered. 

“Oh.” Wakatoshi pauses. “I apologize. It must have been a mistake.” He doesn’t look like he thought it was a mistake, though. Tendou smirks, eyes focused on Suga. Then, they’re both gone, and the door slams shut, the sound echoing through the hallway. 

Suga stands there for a moment, thoroughly dazed. Hitoka isn’t having an affair with the Queen of Faerie. That just can’t be _right._ Yachi Hitoka, who never wanted to come to Faerie in the first place, who was roped into it by his parents. 

“Your Highness!” A voice calls. 

Speak of the devil. 

“Hitoka!” He says, spinning around to face her. “Hello. Did you need something?” 

“Not need,” She replies, brown eyes worried. “But I did wonder-did you tell the queen and king that you were leaving?” 

“Oh.” Suga feels a little pang of guilt. “Why?” 

“Your Highness.” Hitoka’s voice is urgent. “Did you tell them?” 

“I really don’t see-,” 

“Sugawara!” Hitoka yells, and he shrinks a little bit. Hitoka never yells. “Did you tell them that you were coming to Faerie?!” 

“No.” Suga admits, “But why does it matter? When the Fey send you back-,” 

“No!” Hitoka wails, grabbing his hand and dragging him back towards the doors. “We have to tell Shimizu _right now!_ I assumed that you’d _told your parents!_ ” 

“They wouldn’t have let me come.” Suga says, still baffled. 

“Of course they wouldn’t have!” Hitoka throws her shoulder against the door, and it caves inwards with a creak. Shimizu looks up from her throne, and her expression seems to soften a bit when she sees Hitoka. 

“What can I do for you?” She asks. 

“Your Majesty.” Hitoka says, voice high and panicked, “Sugawara did not inform the royal family of Miliwyn that he would be attempting this journey. You need to send him back. Please. Now.” 

“No!” Suga says, yanking his arm out of Hitoka’s grip. “You need to send her back! I came down here to sacrifice my life to save hers! You have to accept that!” 

Shimizu’s eyes have been getting wider and wider as Hitoka and Suga have been speaking. Now, she waves a hand, and they’re both silent. For a moment, she stares at them, big grey eyes huge. 

“This,” She says quietly, “Explains rather a lot.” 

“What?” Hitoka and Suga’s voices are both disbelieving. 

“Miliwyn declared a state of emergency as of this morning. They called together a war council.” Shimizu’s tone is blunt, and Suga gapes as she says it. “As of this morning, we are at war. We did not think we had done anything, but now I see-Miliwyn thinks that we have stolen their Crown Prince, newly married.” Her lip curls, and she looks at Suga with somewhat obvious hatred. “I did not want a war, Sugawara Koushi. I do not desire a war. Too many of my people have been slain before by the hands of a human. I will not let it happen again if I can help it.” 

“Send somebody up! An envoy!” Suga says, and his voice is rapidly becoming panicked as well. Hitoka has both hands fisted in the material of her dress, and she’s breathing very rapidly. Shimizu is frowning at both of them. 

“You really think they would trust a faerie?” Shimizu sounds scornful, but her expression changes rapidly, and she looks at the ceiling, which is high above her head. With a start, Suga recognizes two eagles perched on the huge crystal chandelier. She looks as though she’s contemplating something.

“M-my Queen?” Hitoka asks after a brief pause, and suddenly, one of the eagles has flown down. The green-gold eyes tell Suga who it is, even before the transformation occurs. 

“My Queen?” Wakatoshi echoes Hitoka’s words, and Shimizu looks at him. 

“I assume you’ve been listening.” She says. 

“I have.” 

“What do you suggest?” Shimizu’s tone suggests that her patience is wearing thin. 

Wakatoshi thinks for a long moment before responding. 

“I suggest sending a human to the human world, to assure them that we did not kidnap their prince.” 

“Only one?” Shimizu asks. She sounds curious, now.

“Only one.” Wakatoshi confirms, and he looks back at Hitoka and Suga. “The other can be held as necessary. I would further suggest sending Yachi Hitoka back to the surface, since the prince came all this way only to achieve that very goal.” 

“Hmm.” Shimizu looks at Suga and Hitoka, and there’s something in her eyes that’s unplaceable. “I suppose you’re right.” She says finally. “Please make arrangements for Yachi Hitoka to be sent back to the surface as soon as possible.” 

“No.” Hitoka whispers. “M-my Queen- _Shimizu,_ please, please, let Sugawara go instead. Please.” 

“Yachi-san.” Wakatoshi says from his place next to Shimizu. “It is better this way. If Sugawara is sent back, they’ll think him mad. He left of his own accord-they will say he’s been bewitched. You were forced here, and by their hand no less. They will not doubt you.” 

“Y-you can’t.” Hitoka is hiccuping now, and she looks at Shimizu imploringly. “Please, you have to send him back. They won’t-,” 

“Hitoka.” Shimizu says softly, and there’s regret in every inch of her expression. “They will.” 

“They _won’t._ ” Hitoka repeats, insistently, but she’s crying, her composure slipping away. “They won’t.”

“I will escort Hitoka-chan back to her chambers.” Shimizu says, rising. “Ushijima, please make the arrangements. Tendou,” And here, she looks up at the chandelier, “Please arrange for a permanent room for Sugawara.” 

The eagle caws once, and flies away. Shimizu snaps her fingers, and she and Hitoka disappear. Wakatoshi looks at Suga once, and Suga thinks he sees pity in the faerie’s gaze, before he exits the room. 

He doesn’t want pity. He wants answers, and he wants them now. 

Unfortunately, it appears that there’s nobody left to offer them. 

Suga storms out of the throne room, eyes dark and mind racing. His parents wouldn’t have declared war. That’s utterly ridiculous. They’re the most peaceful people he know. 

“Now _that’s_ sure as hell not true.” A voice drawls, and Suga spins around to see yet another faerie standing behind him, leaning against a wall, and looking distinctly bored. His bangs are cut at an odd angle, though he suspects that’s on purpose. The Fey love getting a rise out of humans.

“What’s not?” He asks, heart beating. 

“They’re not _peaceful._ ” The faerie spits out, pushing away from the wall. “They declared war.” 

“I-I never said-,” Suga’s fairly sure he never said those words out loud. 

“Of course you didn’t.” The faerie says, momentary burst of fury gone, replaced by that boredom again. “You didn’t have to. Your parents aren’t peaceful. They sold your friend-Hitoka, was it?-to us for your miserable life. They’re the kind of bastards who hide behind other people to secure their own prosperity. Why do you think they never told you? They knew you’d react badly. They’re ruthless.” And here, he smiles, a twisted kind of smile. “They’re cutthroat. They would kill for you-even your precious husband wouldn’t be safe. Though I suspect you wouldn’t be too upset about that.” 

“W-what?” His parents would never kill. They certainly wouldn’t kill Daichi. Daichi hasn’t done anything wrong. He doesn’t deserve to die.

“Interesting.” The faerie says, “Or perhaps you would be.” 

“What are you?” Suga whispers. 

“Shirabu Kenjirou.” The faerie gives a sharp tug on something that Suga can’t see, and Suga feels something ram into his mind, hard, cracking a wall. “Damn, you’re terrified now. Tendou tells me not to open with that, but he’s an idiot, so it doesn’t much matter. I’m still not sure how he made the Queen’s guard.” 

“Y-you-,” 

“Mm.” Shirabu grins. “You don’t like Tendou, do you? Well, we have that much in common at least.” 

“You can see inside my head?” Suga gasps out, somewhat shocked. Shirabu rolls his eyes, a slow gesture that takes twice as long as it needs to. 

“Finally, something you’re right about.” 

“You can _see_ inside my _head._ ” Suga repeats. 

“You’re quite slow, aren’t you?” Shirabu says. “Have I broken you already? That’s disappointing. Her Majesty made it sound like you’d last much longer.” He sounds genuinely discouraged, too. “I could show you your parents. Perhaps that’d ground you to reality.” 

“My parents?” Suga asks. 

Shirabu doesn’t even respond, just smiles, and it’s that same wicked smile from before. It’s a smile that begs you to trust it, that overflows with charm, but that poison drips from every faucet of. 

“Yes.” He says slowly, drawing out the syllable. “Your parents. That would be something, wouldn’t it? Or maybe your husband. He’s worried sick, you know. You got married and then left him?” Shirabu shakes his head in mock disappointment. 

“How do you know that?” Suga asks, taking a step backwards. Shirabu looks immensely pleased with himself. 

“Oh for goodness’ sake.” He huffs, and reaches forward to grab Suga’s wrist before Suga’s realized what the hell is going on. There’s a shock for a moment, and Shirabu’s hand is freezing cold. Trying to yank away only makes him grip harder, and it’s not long before the world is blurring together, the oak of the doors swirling, and the blue of crystal cracking apart, until he’s sitting inside a room, huge and mostly taken up by a huge, long table. 

“I don’t care.” Sugawara Ayaka says from one end of the table, her voice iron. “I am going to get my son back.” 

Suga realizes with a start that her crown is gone, and her long sleeves are partially torn off. Her eyes are merciless, and Daichi is standing by her side, looking slightly worried. 

“You,” She hisses, rounding on Daichi. “You saw him last. Tell me what he said.” 

“Your Majesty,” Daichi starts, panic evident in his eyes. “I don’t know where he’s gone. The time he and I spoke, all he said was that he had a matter to attend to elsewhere. I did not know that he intended to go to Faerie.” 

“He’s telling the truth!” Suga yells, “You can’t just declare war on the Fey!” 

No sound comes out of his mouth. Neither his mother nor Daichi appear to notice. His father sits, glowering furiously at a map that’s spread out across the surface of the table. 

“You must have known _something._ ” The queen says, eyes wild and huge. “You’re his husband. You must have known.” 

“I didn’t, Your Majesty.” Daichi repeats. “I can ask my guards-,” 

“Do it.” Suga’s mother orders, standing up straight and leaning over his father’s shoulder to stare at the map. Her expression is blank. “I want you to find out what happened to my son. I want everybody to be questioned. If they saw him, I want to know what was said. We are getting Koushi back.” 

“Your Majesty-,” Daichi tries to interject. Suga wants to talk to him, wants to explain so badly it almost hurts, but he’s not really there. Or, he is, but they can’t see or hear him. 

“Everyone.” Ayaka says, “Nobody is escaping this. We are getting the Crown Prince of Miliwyn back, and we are doing it by any means necessary. Is that understood?” Without waiting for an answer, she turns and storms out of the room. 

The room disappears. 

Suga is back in a corridor, with Shirabu letting go of his wrist and rubbing his palms together. 

“That was quite something.” Shirabu drawls. “Your mother is nothing short of terrifying, Sugawara Koushi.” 

“You need to let me explain to them.” Suga says, spinning to face the faerie. “You, or Her Majesty, or Wakatoshi, or even Tendou. I need to get back up there. I need-,” 

“What you need.” Shirabu replies, frowning, “Is to keep your mouth shut. This was a memory from six days ago. It’s not still going on.” 

“What’s going on now?” 

“Last I heard,” And here, Shirabu’s eyes dart to the right, towards the door, as if he’s afraid somebody will be listening. “The Helnian prince had set off for Faerie. That was yesterday. Don’t get your hopes up, though. He won’t be allowed to stay. He’ll probably be executed the moment he steps foot here.” The last part is spoken with nothing short of contempt. “It’s his own fault.” 

“Daichi’s coming here.” Suga breathes, and runs off down the direction that Wakatoshi had gone, leaving Shirabu, who looks bored again. He passes portraits and other Fey, who scowl as he walks past. He passes tables full of gold and diamond, and doors that are opening. And suddenly, up ahead is Wakatoshi, walking at a brisk pace.  
Suga slams into his back. 

Wakatoshi stiffens, and turns around to face him. 

“Sugawara.” He says, “I had assumed you had stayed in the throne room.” 

“No.” Suga gasps, “Daichi is coming. Daichi is on his way. He’s not declaring war. He’s just coming. I don’t know-” 

There’s yelling behind him, and Suga ignores it, ignores the obvious disgust radiating off of the Fey. Wakatoshi blinks at him. 

“Sugawara.” He starts, but Suga cuts him off. 

“No.” He says. “You have to make sure everybody knows. He’s not going to hurt anybody. I don’t think.” 

“Sugawara.” Wakatoshi repeats. 

“You have to tell them!” Suga twists his fingers into the material of his shirt. “They won’t listen to me!” 

“Sugawara.” This time, the voice comes from behind him, and it cuts through the yelling like a knife. It’s quick, and Suga spins around, eyes terrified. 

Daichi is standing in the middle of the hallway. His clothes are torn, and his face is smudged with dirt. 

Suga’s mind flies away from anything else. He doesn’t think about a war. He doesn’t think about the Fey who are all looking, shocked. He doesn’t think about his mother, about what she’s said. He doesn’t think. 

Later, that’s what he’ll account it to. He wasn’t thinking. It didn’t mean anything. It doesn’t have to mean anything. It never will mean anything. Later, he’ll try to convince everybody around him that it doesn’t mean anything. Later, he’ll try to convince himself, too, and fail at it each and every time. Because it does mean something.  
Suga stares at Daichi for a solid moment. Daichi looks back at him. His eyes are steady. They’re not the way they were in the room that Shirabu showed him. 

Surging forward, Suga crashes against Daichi, kissing him hard, and completely ignoring the gasps and chaos that the corridor dissolves into around him. 

***

_“True love.” The woman in front of him scoffs, her long white hair held back with a thousand tiny pins. “You don’t believe in true love.”_

_“I do.” Suga says quietly. “Yui doesn’t, though.”_

_“Then you shouldn’t have anything to worry about.” She reasons. “If you’re so certain of true love, and that your true love will find you, then what do you have to lose? You’ll all wake up in a hundred years anyways.”_

_“But Yui. And Shouyou. And Tooru.” Suga replies, and he stares for a long moment at the spinning wheel in front of him. “They’ll be disappointed. Hitoka. What will happen to Hitoka?”_

_“That, I can’t say.” She says. “But think of the riots. Think of your parents.”_

_“My parents made the deal so that I wouldn’t have to go through that.” Suga points out, crossing his arms. “But the riots are getting worse.”_

_“And you know it.” The woman stands, and hooks a finger into the spooks of the wheel, effectively slowing it. “Soon, your parents will be little more than figureheads.”_

_“How long?” He asks, looking again at the spinning wheel._

_“How long?” She echoes, frowning. “I give it a few months, at best, before they get cocky enough to storm the castle. Many will die. The few that survive will be unhappy. There isn’t an easy way out.”_

_“That’s true.” Suga says reluctantly._

_“Besides, what about you?” The woman says, her green eyes knowing. “What about your quest?”_

_Suga stiffens._

_“I don’t have a quest,” He hears himself say distantly._

_“Liar.” The woman is calm in her accusation. “You’ve been looking for true love since the moment you made that deal at age seven. You’ve looked in everybody at the palace. You even tried to find it with Yui, tried to convince her that she was the one.”_

_“She laughed at me.” Suga says, laughing slightly. “She said that we were only friends. That was when we were ten.”_

_“You wondered if perhaps Tooru was your true love.” She states, brow knitting together. “But he was so clearly infatuated with that friend of his-Hajime?-that there wasn’t any room in his heart for anybody else. Besides, you’d never really felt that way about him to begin with.”_

_“He’s always looking at Hajime.” Suga reflects, “Always. I notice it. Everybody notices. My parents say they’ll never work, though, because Hajime is common, and Tooru is royalty.”_

_“You looked for it in Hitoka, wondered if true love could be between friends. But it isn’t quite that simple, is it? If it was, you could just get Michimiya Yui to kiss you.”_

_“It’s not.” Suga replies. “My true love means the person that I’ll marry someday. I’ve been over this.”_

_“You started to wonder, last year, if it was all futile.” The woman says, her voice soothing and sympathetic. “You started to wonder if Hitoka would be taken soon.”_

_“If I prick myself, she might never be taken.” Suga murmurs. “She could live out a normal life with her mother.”_

_“She could.” The woman agrees. “Indeed.”_

_“So it would be better if I pricked myself.”_

_“That’s your choice.” She shrugs. “If you want to, by all means. It should be your choice, though. I didn’t curse you because I wanted you to die, Sugawara Koushi, I cursed you because I wanted to teach your family a lesson. About loss. About what matters. If their precious son died, then perhaps they’d realize that there is more to life than political charts and evening balls.”_

_“You didn’t want to kill me?” Suga says, surprised enough to face her._

_“Of course not.” She scoffs. “I’m not bloodthirsty. Your family is famous for being stuck-up. Your father is famous for ruthlessness-your mother, for efficiency over all else. They don’t care about the people.”_

_“They-,”_

_“Don’t argue with me about this one.” She says tiredly. “I’ve been alive for hundreds of years longer than you. I know what I’m talking about.”_

_“But I shouldn’t do it.” Suga says, voicing his thoughts. Yui would tell him not to. Tooru would snort and say it wasn’t even a question. Shouyou would be shocked that he’s even considering it._

_“It’s your choice, Koushi.” Her voice is exhausted. She sounds like she’s had this conversation with a thousand different people-and maybe she has. “Your choice. You don’t know what’ll happen either way, but one is less of a wild card than the other.”_

_“If I prick myself.” Suga reasons slowly. “Then maybe Hitoka won’t be sent away. Maybe Yui could forgive me.”_

_“Maybe.”_

_“Or maybe not.”_

_“Or maybe not.” She agrees. “Choose, Sugawara. Choose.”_

_Suga chooses._

_He chooses because he’s selfish, because he doesn’t want another option. He chooses because even though this fixes nothing, it’s delaying the issue. For one hundred years. A century of peace._

_He chooses, and the moment the blood wells up on the pad of his finger, he knows he’s chosen wrong._

_“You chose.” The woman says, somewhat sadly. “I did not think you would.”_

_Suga can’t feel his legs, and everything is starting to blur together, to bleed into itself. The woman’s green eyes stay constant. He’s totally and completely helpless._

_“Sugawara.” Her eyes are bright and angry. “In one hundred years you’ll wake up. And I can’t say I’ll envy you when you do.”_

_The darkness rushes to fill in everything, until only the bright green of her eyes are left, and then that fades too, and Suga stops thinking._

***

Suga stops thinking. 

He stops thinking about the Fey who’ve erupted into screams and shouts, cries of _he shouldn’t be here,_ and _kill the intruder,_ and _where’s the Queen_. He stops thinking about his parents, who were willing to do who knows what. He stops thinking that he doesn’t have the capability to love. 

He stops thinking about everything past the feeling of Daichi’s lips against his. They’re warm, and Daichi kisses him like he’s the only thing that matters, hard and passionate. 

When they break apart, Suga has all of a second to think about it before Shimizu Kiyoko appears beside them, looking nothing short of furious. Hitoka isn’t there. 

“Sugawara.” She says, her voice trembling. “Sawamura Daichi. If you would kindly join me.” 

She grips Suga’s arm and Daichi’s wrist. There’s a cold feeling that clouds his mind, and suddenly the world is flashing by in blurs of wind and bright colors. Occasionally, a voice will suddenly they’re in a small, clean room with nothing more than a desk in it, and Shirabu, against the wall again. He doesn’t look surprised to see them. 

“Sawamura.” Shimizu’s eyes are alight with grey flames, and she glares. “You’ve deigned it necessary to pay us a visit, have you?” 

“My Queen,” Shirabu cuts in, “He didn’t come for us.” 

“Then what-,” Her eyes fall on Suga. “You _idiot._ ” 

“I didn’t contact him!” Suga protests, trying not to flush, and trying not to look at Daichi. “I swear! He came down here on his own!” 

Shimizu looks at Shirabu, who shrugs, clearly indifferent. 

“He’s telling the truth.” 

“Is he?” Shimizu’s eyes soften, barely. “Well, he’ll have to be sent back. We can’t have both of them running around down here.” 

“Your Majesty-,” Suga tries to interrupt. 

“No discussion.” Shimizu says, her voice iron. “He’s to be sent back with Yachi Hitoka tomorrow at dawn. They can explain that we mean Miliwyn no harm.” 

“No.” Daichi says unexpectedly. “I came down here to get Suga. I’m not leaving without him.” 

“Again?” Shirabu smirks, and looks at Suga. “You’re quite popular, Sugawara. Everybody wants you to go back. So why are you still here to begin with?” 

“I came down here so that Hitoka could go back.” Suga explains. “But Daichi came down so that I could. Which means that both Hitoka and Daichi will be leaving, and I will be staying here.” 

“That’s not-,” 

“Yes.” Shimizu hisses. “It is exactly what will be happening. Sawamura Daichi, you are going back, and Sugawara Koushi is not coming with you. That is the end of this discussion.” 

“But-,” Daichi tries to say.

“ _No._ ” Shimizu says softly, taking a step forward. “ _I am not putting a kingdom at war because of your crush._ ” 

Shirabu takes a step towards Daichi, holding up both hands in a gesture of surrender, before reaching towards his belt for something. 

“What are you doing?” Daichi asks warily. 

“Relax.” Shirabu says. “I’d rather not knock you out, but you’ve made it clear that you’re not going to cooperate any other way.” 

“At least let me-,” Daichi starts, before Shirabu snaps his fingers. There’s a moment of silence, where nothing happens, before Daichi crumples, clearly unconscious. 

“I don’t trust you as far as I can throw you.” Shirabu drawls. “My Queen, I’ll let you take it from here, since you probably want to bid your lover adieu.” 

Shimizu flushes, but doesn’t deny it. Reaching down to touch Daichi’s shoulder lightly, she closes her eyes, and they’re both gone in a flash of light. Shirabu looks at Suga, pity evident in his gaze. 

“Humans.” He says derisively. “I’ll leave you to sort yourself out.” 

He exits the room, leaving Suga still there, shell-shocked, and pressing trembling fingers to his lips, which are still tingling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Long time no see! we're back to regular update schedule now!  
> (also I now have a twitter! i'm @poppyrainstorm)


	7. Midnight

“I wish to put in a request.” Suga says firmly, standing in front of Shimizu, who rolls her eyes. 

“You’ve said this every week since he’s left, Sugawara.” 

“And every week you deny me.” He reminds her, crossing his arms. It’s been three weeks since Daichi and Hitoka have left. It’s been three weeks that he’s begged for her to let him see the human world again, via Shirabu, and three weeks that she’s refused. 

“True.” Shimizu admits. “I do it for a reason. You would not like what is happening up there. You would probably try to leave, as a matter of fact. And that would be one of the worst mistakes you could ever make.” 

“Why won’t you _let me go?_ ” Suga cries out, frustrated. “I’m of no value to you! You were roped into a bargain after you tailored the curse that some bitter witch put on me years ago! Why am I still here?!” 

“Wrong.” Shimizu snaps, standing and taking a step towards him. “One, I was not _roped_ into a bargain. I made it of my own volition. Second, it is no longer a choice of simply ‘letting you go’. You think humans would ever respect us ever again if that were to happen?” 

“I’m still useless here.” Suga points out. 

“Have you ever heard of chess, Sugawara?” Shimizu asks, her grey eyes thoughtful. “I’ve heard it’s a sort of a human game. There are various pieces, various players, who do various things. They’re all quite powerful, save the pawns-and, of course the king.” Her smile is vicious. 

“Yes.” Suga says quietly.

“Pawns are quite useless.” Shimizu says, and she looks almost childlike in that moment, circlet slightly crooked, feet bare and roaming, hem of her dress slightly mud-stained. “They don’t really have a purpose, do they? Just there to be sacrificed.” 

“Are you saying I’m a pawn?” Suga asks, slightly nonplussed. 

“Of course not.” Shimizu says, eyes wide and open and innocent. “You’re the king, Sugawara. You’re well guarded. Winning you means winning the game. But when it comes to abilities, all you can do is hide and run. You’re almost as useless as a pawn. Almost. Not quite.” Her eyes sparkle. “And yet, and yet, and yet.” 

“I will not be useless.” Suga snaps. “I am going back, Your Majesty, whether you will it or not. I am going to-,” 

“What?” Shimizu asks, tilting her head back to look at the lone eagle perched on the chandelier. “What could you possibly do? Shirabu!” 

The eagle swoops down, and lands on her shoulder. Its claws dig in, and blood beads up there, the red a stark contrast to her pale skin and black dress. Shimizu appears unaffected, however. 

“Your Majesty-,” Suga says, eyes fixed on the eagle. “Your eagle-,” 

“It does not matter.” Shimizu replies, dismissive. “Your request is denied. Again.” She adds. 

“I’ll do anything you want.” Suga says, “If you let me contact them.” 

Shimizu pauses. 

“Anything is a word that carries weight.” She says slowly. “I don’t think you’d like to make that particular bargain, Koushi.” 

“I will.” At this point, he’s desperate. Besides, whatever Shimizu wants from him can’t be worse that seeing one of his best friends traded for sparing his life. 

“You won’t.” Shimizu dares him. Suga is sure that they make quite a picture, in that moment, the desperate prince begging for the contact, half out of his mind, and the Queen of Faerie, bloody and warning him against it. 

“I will.” He repeats, closing his eyes for a moment. “Anything you want, Shimizu Kiyoko. Anything you want.” 

There’s a long silence. The eagle’s claws are half-buried in Shimizu’s shoulder. The light of the chandelier is too bright, and Suga has to squint to see. 

“Hush.” Shimizu’s voice is soft but deadly. For a moment, Suga thinks he’s talking to her, before he realizes that she’s got one hand around the beak of the eagle. 

“Anything.” He says softly. 

“Anything.” Shimizu repeats. “Very well. Anything I want. I want you to deliver a message for me.” 

“Very well.” Suga breathes, light-headed and relieved. “Very well.” 

“I want you to deliver a message to Yachi Hitoka.” Shimizu clarifies, and the floaty feeling falls down to earth in a million tiny pieces. 

“What?” 

“Hitoka. Your friend. I want you to tell her something.” 

“No.” Suga says coldly. “You’ve cursed her.” 

“I haven’t!” Shimizu snaps, and her eyes blaze with fury. “Perhaps you find it hard to believe that your friend would ever court a faerie, but you once found it hard to believe that you would ever love the Helnian prince!” 

“I-what?” 

“Don’t play dumb!” Shimizu yells, and there are tears in her eyes now. “If you can love him, where you once despised the mere thought of him, how different can it possibly be with Yachi?” 

She takes a step backwards, and collapses into her throne, curling into herself and crying softly. Suga is speechless. 

“It’s no different.” Shimizu repeats. “It’s no different.” 

“You’re in love with Hitoka.” Suga says numbly. “They weren’t lying.” 

“Who weren’t?” Shimizu glares at him. “What?” 

“Wakatoshi and Tendou.” 

“Those bastards.” Shimizu mutters, swiping at her eyes angrily. “They shouldn’t have known. It was a secret.” She looks balefully at Suga. “You can’t tell anybody. Yachi would be in great danger.” 

“But she knows, doesn’t she?” Suga tries and fails to keep the bitterness out of his tone. “She knows. You two-you two.” He ends, lamely. 

“Us two.” Shimizu says, her tone wistful. “Us two. She came here screaming and crying, you know. It’s been so long since I last loved. I did not expect to love her.” 

“You actually love her.” Suga knows he sounds incredulous, but he doesn’t care. “You actually love Hitoka.” 

“Of course I do.” Shimizu sits up a little straighter. “And you love Sawamura Daichi. Don’t deny it.” She adds. “I saw you both. Say what you will, but don’t deny that. It would be utterly ridiculous, even for you.” 

“I...I don’t know how I feel about Daichi.” Suga says, and it’s the truth. There’s something about Daichi that he can’t fully put into words. 

Maybe it’s the way he listens to Suga, even when what Suga’s saying sounds ridiculous. Maybe it’s the way he doesn’t press for details, or the way he’s always honest. Maybe it’s the way Daichi held him on the battlements in the rain, that third meeting that meant more to both of them than Suga was willing to articulate. 

“You don’t.” Shimizu says, surprised. “That’s unexpected.” She smiles a little, and stands up again, rubbing away the last of her tears. 

“Why?” Suga asks, confused. He’s never told anybody about Daichi, or his mixed feelings. Come to think of it, the only person that could’ve even had a chance at knowing would have been-

“Shirabu.” Shimizu replies simply. “He rooted around inside your head a bit, didn’t he? I do hope he didn’t startle you.” She shoots a look at the eagle, who caws and flies back up to the chandelier. There are two long gashes on either side of her shoulder, and her skin is covered in drying blood. Suga doesn’t quite know what to say. 

“It doesn’t hurt.” She calls, as though she can read his mind. “I have learned to live beyond physical pain. It does not cause me grief as it would with you.” She casts him a look. “Perhaps we are not so different, Sugawara.” 

“Perhaps not.” Suga agrees quietly. “King and Queen.” He remembers her chess analogy, and laughs. 

“King and Queen.” Shimizu echoes. “Chess pieces on the board that is life. And what a board it is. Black and white squares, and twists and turns. Shirabu knows how to play.” She adds after a moment. “I don’t. I could learn, but when would I ever play?” 

“Hitoka would have played chess with you.” Suga says. 

“She would have.” 

“I don’t know why she chose you.” Suga’s words are blunt, but he never expected Hitoka to court a faerie, much less the Queen of Faerie. 

“I don’t know either.” Shimizu confesses. “She is better than I am. She is kind and giving. I’ve never been very good at either one.” 

There’s a long silence, where Shimizu looks distantly past Suga, and Suga thinks about the bargain she proposes. 

“I’ll deliver your message.” 

Shimizu smiles, and it’s full and genuine. 

“I knew you would. Although I am not sure that you want to see the outside world, horrible as it is right now.” 

“I want to see my parents.” Suga says firmly. “I want to see Yui and Shouyou. I want to be able to talk to them.” 

“And Sawamura.” Shimizu says quietly, the hint of a smirk playing around the corners of her mouth. 

“And Daichi.” Suga flushes, and turns away so that she can’t see it. 

“I’d like to you to tell Yachi that I’m sorry.” Shimizu murmurs. “And tell her that I enjoyed it. Tell her that I miss her. And tell her….” She trails off. “Tell her that she was more than enough.” 

Suga nods, and Shimizu looks upward.

“Shirabu!” She calls, and suddenly he’s standing next to her, in his human form. 

“If you’re going to call me down, My Queen,” He says grumpily, “Please just keep me down here. I would prefer to not take more trips up and down than I must.” 

“Mm.” Shimizu gestures to Suga. “He wants to communicate with the humans. They’re in Miliwyn. You should be able to make do with that, especially since you’ve seen some of them with your own two eyes.” 

“It’s enough information.” Shirabu agrees, eyes locked on Suga. He holds out a hand. “You want to see your family?” 

“No.” Suga blurts out. “I want to see Yui. And Shouyou and Tooru and Hitoka. And Daichi.” 

“Yui, Shouyou, Tooru, Hitoka, Daichi. Yui, Shouyou, Tooru, Hitoka, Daichi.” Shirabu murmurs the names like they’re a song. “Yui. Yui. Michimiya Yui?”

“That’s the one.” 

“Michimiya.” Shirabu enunciates each syllable very carefully. “Hinata Shouyou. Oikawa Tooru. Yachi Hitoka. Sawamura Daichi.” 

“How do you-,” 

“Done.” Shirabu interrupts. “Are you sure you want to see them? Their minds are very disorienting.” 

“Yes.” Suga says. 

“As My Queen requests.” Shirabu sighs, and grabs his arm. The throne room slips away, until the only thing left that he can feel is Shirabu’s cold hand on his arm, and then even that slips away. 

***

“What the hell is this?” 

That’s the first thing Suga hears. It’s familiar, annoyed, and entirely too close for comfort. 

There’s darkness all around him, and it sounds like they’re both underwater, but he’d recognize Michimiya Yui’s voice anywhere. 

“Yui!” 

“Suga?” Her voice is sheer disbelief. “They told us you were in Faerie!”

“I am!” 

“Then how are you-,” 

“Yui?” This time, it’s Shouyou who speaks, and the darkness recedes a bit. He can see Shouyou’s hair, bright orange and sticking straight up, painted with dark streaks. 

“Shouyou?” Now she sounds utterly baffled. “Suga, what’s going on?” 

“Suga-san!” Shouyou screams, and Suga takes a step forward, only to bump into somebody else. 

“Ouch!” There’s a crash, and suddenly they’re all standing in light. Tooru is on the ground, rubbing his head, and looking up at Suga, clearly very confused. 

They’re all in Suga’s bedroom, the bed neatly made, the window open, and the door gone. Shouyou is clinging to one of the bedposts and squinting. Yui is next to the window, her dress covered in flour. Hitoka is there, though she’s been silent, her face white, and her hair pulled back away from her face. With a sinking feeling that Suga wishes didn’t accompany the though, he realizes that Daichi isn’t here. 

“Sugawara?” Tooru’s voice is incredulous. “No. You’re not here. You’re-,” 

“In Faerie.” Suga says, regaining his voice. “I know. Shimizu let me visit. Hitoka,” He adds, turning to face her. “She wants me to deliver a message to you. She says that she’s sorry, that she liked it. She says that she misses you. And she says that you-,” 

“Were more than enough.” Hitoka finishes, her face still white. “I know.” She gives him the barest hint of a smile. 

“Where’s Daichi?” Suga asks, looking around. 

The reactions are startling. 

Tooru looks away, face carefully blank, Shouyou’s eyes get huge, Yui busies herself with her apron, and Hitoka looks horrified. 

“You don’t know?” She says. 

“Know what?” 

“Hitoka.” Tooru says. “There’s no way that he _could_ know. You’ve been gone. But a lot has happened. Hitoka and Sawamura came back out of nowhere. You were gone. Hitoka was a wreck. Sawamura was…..not himself.” 

“He’s been fixated on getting you back ever since he returned.” Yui adds softly. “I don’t know what happened in Faerie, but he does care for you, Suga. Anyway, it wasn’t long after that, I don’t think, before the spindle reappeared.” 

“ _What?_ ” 

“The one you pricked yourself on, Suga-san.” Shouyou looks him full-on. “It was found in the North Tower not a day after they came back.” 

“It turns out that Hajime’s friend, Tsukishima, is somewhat of a magic expert.” Tooru fills in, “So he checked it. Turns out there was residual magic, from when it was cursed for you. They warned everybody not to touch it, to stay away from it. They issued an official warning.” 

“When you say there was residual magic,” Suga interrupts, “What do you mean?” 

“If you pricked yourself-or if anybody, really, pricked themselves-they’d fall back asleep.” Yui says, twisting her hands in her dress. “Not for a century. But true love’s kiss is still required. You’d need another person to come back and kiss you. Tsukishima said that it might last about half that time-fifty years, perhaps, before you’d either wake up, or die in your sleep.” 

“Die?” 

“Yes.” Hitoka says grimly. “We all stayed away from it. We didn’t want anything to do with a spindle that could put us anywhere near death. The king and queen made arrangements to have it destroyed immediately. There was to be a bonfire, I believe, and we were to burn it. It was supposed to be a secret thing.” 

“It didn’t stay secret for long.” Shouyou says. 

“No.” Tooru agrees. “Because something happened. Sawamura-san had been off ever since he’d returned-Yui told you. He’s become obsessed with returning you to Miliwyn. We all told him that it was due to happen eventually-and let me tell you, nobody was more worried than Yui or I. If we could accept it, we thought he could too.” 

“He couldn’t.” Shouyou whispers, looking at the ground, and scrubbing at his eyes. “I tried, Suga-san. I’m so sorry.” 

“Shouyou was allowed to be present for the transfer of the spindle.” Yui explains. “Along with Tsukishima, and Kageyama. We were all prepared for the damned thing to be burned.” 

“Sawamura-san came out of nowhere.” Shouyou says, looking up. “He took the spindle from Tsukishima while Kageyama and I were arguing. It was stupid. I should’ve been more alert.”

“What happened?” Suga asks, horrified. “Shouyou, _what happened?_ ” 

“He said that he wanted to see you again.” Shouyou whispers, crying softly, “And he t-told us that he loved you. And th-th-then he pricked himself. I thought maybe it would be okay, that maybe Tsukishima had been wrong. I thought-,” He cuts himself off with a choked sob. “I’m sorry, Suga-san. I failed.” 

“Tsukishima wasn’t wrong.” Yui says quietly. “Sawamura-san has been asleep for the past two days, and though he seems to be alive, he shows no signs of waking up. He would not appear in any faerie-induced visions, being under the influence of a faerie curse.” 

There’s absolute silence, and Suga feels like he’s falling. 

All he can think about is Daichi, back turned to him when he first woke up, so polite and kind and not needing to know every detail. Daichi, hugging him, rain pouring down, Daichi offering him a different kind of marriage, Daichi in the hallway in Faerie, Daichi’s lips against his own. Now, he imagines Daichi as Shouyou describes him, desperate, saying that he loves Suga. 

He loves Suga. 

He can't quite comprehend it.

And as if that isn't enough, Daichi is asleep, for fifty years exactly, before his death. Fifty years. And Suga is eternally bound in Faerie.

“I’m sorry, Koushi.” Tooru says softly. 

“Don’t be.” Suga’s voice sound rusty and uneven to his ears. “There was nothing you could have done.” 

He feels detached from his body, as though he’s in a different world. He can’t feel anything, and his vision sways for a moment. 

“What else?” He asks. 

“Tooru has news.” Yui says hesitantly. “Regarding Iwaizumi-san.” 

“Iwaizumi?” Suga turns to face Tooru. “What about Iwaizumi?” 

“Oh.” Tooru looks shy all of a sudden, which is disconcerting, because Tooru never looks shy. “It’s, uh, it’s nothing huge.” 

“It’s huge for you.” Yui says, looking exasperated. “Go on.” 

“Hajime is starting to get his memories back.” Tooru says all in a rush. “And I don’t know why but I just-,” 

“Wakatoshi.” Suga breathes. 

“What?” Tooru looks at him, clearly baffled. 

“Nothing.” Suga says, shaking his head to clear it. If Wakatoshi really is giving Iwaizumi his memories back, Suga doesn’t want to be the one to stop him. 

“He remembers a bit of our childhoods.” Tooru says, and his expression is soft now. “He remembers enough. It’s already enough.” 

“I’m happy for you, Tooru.” Suga says, and it’s not a lie. He’s happy for Tooru-it’s only that the news of Daichi is too startling for him to feel anything but shock. 

“You are,” Tooru acknowledges. “But that’s not the most pressing matter at hand here. Your prince is asleep-,” 

“He’s not mine.” Suga protests. 

“And you need to figure out how to get yourself out of Faerie, since nobody in their right mind would transport the Crown Prince of Helnia down there.” 

“You know.” Hitoka muses, “We always refer to Faerie as ‘down’. Why is that? It’s actually above us, if we’re being specific. Shimizu-,” She cuts herself off, blushing, and looking awkwardly away from Suga. 

“It’s _fine._ ” Suga says, slightly aggravated at this point. “Everything is _fine._ Hitoka courting the Queen of Faerie is _fine._ Iwaizumi getting his memories back is _more than fine._ Daichi being in a faerie-induced sleep is _absolutely fine!_ ”

Yui looks at him, and there’s nothing but pity in her gaze. Suga wants to scream for all he’s worth, but he doesn’t. 

“Oh, Koushi…,” She says sadly. “I’m so sorry.” She moves forward to hug him, but her arms pass through his torso easily. Tooru looks surprised, and Shouyou’s eyes get so big that they look like they’re about to pop. Hitoka doesn’t look up, face still flushed. 

“Koushi?” Yui asks, clearly confused, but the room is blurring again, the colors swirling together, Yui and Shouyou and Tooru and Hitoka. 

And no Daichi. 

***

“Ouch.” Shirabu comments lightly when Suga’s eyes open. “It must’ve been bad. You look exhausted. That won’t do. That’s _my_ job.” 

And indeed, Shirabu does look as though he hasn’t slept in a week. His hair is ruffled, and there are dark circles, like bruises, that stand out under his eyes. There’s a red mark on his hand where it’s touched Suga’s skin, and he’s wincing like he has a headache. 

“Shimizu.” Suga gasps. “Get Shimizu. I need to go back.” 

Shirabu’s eyes darken. 

“I warned her.” He mutters, waving long fingers and tracing something invisible in the air. “I warned her, dammit, but she didn’t listen. She was too hooked on the prospect of Yachi Hitoka. Which, I’ve no intention to offend you, but that’s not a valid reason. As she’s said before, endangering the sake of an entire kingdom because of a human love is unwise.” 

Suga winces, remembering when those words have been directed at him. 

Shimizu flings the door open, expression dark. 

“No.” She says. 

“My Queen,” Shirabu drawls, “Permission to take my leave?” 

“Granted.” She says shortly, slamming the door. “Leave Sugawara and I to have a chat.” 

“Be gentle.” Shirabu replies unexpectedly, and then he’s gone. Suga can’t tell if he’s been speaking to Shimizu, or to Suga himself. 

“We’ve had this conversation.” Shimizu snaps. “You can’t leave. Otherwise-,” 

“Otherwise what?” Suga explodes, sitting straight up, and then deciding that it was a very bad decision a moment later when his head starts to throb. 

“Sugawara, you are not leaving.” Shimizu grits out. “I will put security around this room. What on earth could be worth going up there for?” 

“Daichi is asleep! It’s like my curse!” Suga yells. “He’s going to die, and since my contract is for life, I can’t go up there! If you would-,” 

“No.” Shimizu cuts him off. “You can’t go up there. It would start a revolt.” 

“Miliwyn-,” 

“Not Miliwyn, you idiot.” Shimizu hisses, crossing her arms, grey eyes full of fury. “Down here. You realize that nobody wants to harbor you instead of Yachi? We’d much rather have her but we have to have you instead, so it’ll be under our terms. If you want to kiss your true love, you’ll have to find a way to bring him down here yourself.” 

“I will.” Suga says, lifting his head to look her in the eye. “I will.” 

“That will be interesting to see.” Shimizu replies, lowering her arms, and storming out, leaving the smell of smoke behind her. 

Suga is left alone, with only his promise. It echoes in his ears long after Shimizu is gone, long after the light streaming through the window fades from gold, and the sky turns black with night. 

_I will._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> come visit me on twitter @poppyrainstorm


	8. Daybreak

The first logical step, of course, is to contact his friends above, but he can’t get to them without Shirabu, who seems utterly, infuriatingly indifferent about the entire debacle. Whenever he so much as thinks about trying to contact Shirabu, he can practically see Shimizu’s grey eyes, glaring, waiting for him to make the first move. It’s like a chess game, really. She’s expecting him to move first, and Suga would bet that she thinks she knows how he’ll move. He just has to be one step ahead of her. 

Nearly impossible, as he’s up against not only a faerie, but the Queen of Faerie, who keeps her mindbender as a pet eagle. Not to mention that he needs said mindbender to enact his plan. 

“Good morning, Sugawara.” Shimizu says quietly, and he nods at her briefly. “I thought today you could entertain me.” 

“Pardon?” Suga looks up. “Entertain?” 

“Entertain.” She repeats. “I want to play chess with you.” 

“Chess.” Suga hopes he doesn’t sound too incredulous. “You want me to play chess with you?” 

He doesn’t say, _aren’t we already playing?_ He doesn’t say, _you think you’re at checkmate._ He doesn’t say, _your most protected piece was traded away and you’re stuck with me._ He doesn’t say, _mine is up there too, and he’s asleep._

But, _oh,_ does he want to. 

Shimizu snaps her fingers, and they’re both in the throne room. Suga has become accustomed to her method of teleportation, the flash of light and the uncomfortable cold feeling that prickles up his arms that comes with it. The disorienting spin of the colors feels like he’s falling, and he hates it. 

The throne room looks different today. There’s a table in the middle of it, and the throne has been shoved to the side-two chairs are perched on either side of the table. On top of it lies a chess board, the black and white squares perfect and pristine. It’s dimmer, but there are still three eagles perched on the huge crystal chandelier. One of those is Shirabu. One of those is his ticket to win. A germ of an idea worms its way into his head, and he spins around to face Shimizu.

“I’ll play,” He says slowly, “But if I win, you have to give me something.” 

Shimizu’s eyes light up.

“Ohhh.” She breathes, lips curling up into a smile. “Ohh, you want to play for something. That will make this more interesting. All right. You win, I’ll give you whatever you want. Within reason,” She adds. “What happens if I win?” 

“Whatever you want,” Suga replies with a shrug. 

“Whatever I want….” Shimizu muses, tapping a finger against her lips slowly. “Whatever I want. Hmm. It wasn’t long ago that you made that same promise, you realize?”

“I realize.” 

“You’re quite willing to make trades,” Shimizu says casually. “Are you sure you want to do this? What if I ask you for your immortal soul? You’d trade that over a game of chess? I will call your bluff, Sugawara. You wouldn’t give me anything. If I win,” She utters the words triumphantly, as though she’s already secured victory, “If I win, I will create a looking glass. In this looking glass, you’ll be able to see your friends-Michimiya Yui, Oikawa Tooru, Hinata Shouyou, Yachi Hitoka. Sawamura Daichi.” 

“In what way is this calling my bluff, Your Majesty?” Suga asks cautiously. 

“Very easily. If I win, I want you to look in this glass every day for the next fifty years. You will see your friends, yes, but you will see them as you saw them in your dreams-dead, dying, being tortured, betraying you.” 

“My Queen,” Shirabu’s human again, and sitting on the chandelier, feet dangling off as though he’s a child. “Our precious Koushi did not know Sawamura Daichi when he was asleep. What’s your solution to that?” 

“Easy.” Shimizu replies. “He’ll see Daichi as he was in his last moments. Stealing a spindle, declaring his love, falling asleep. Every day.” She repeats. “Fifty years. I’m calling your bluff, Koushi. I don’t think you’ll do it. Because you love him, and the only one denying it at this point is you.” 

There’s utter silence for several moments. 

Suga’s first instinct is to back down, to say that it’s too much. He can’t watch the nightmares for fifty years. He can’t or he won’t.

“I may not even be alive in fifty years,” He manages to get out. “Humans are not immortal, Your Majesty, and their lifespans are short to the Fey.” 

“Wrong!” Shimizu cries, lifting a finger. “While you are here, Sugawara, you do not age. Now choose, Sugawara. Will you play?” 

Suga looks at the chess board. He looks at Shimizu. He thinks of Yui, handling a bowl full of white frosting while maneuvering her way around several other servants, and assuring him that a wedding does not mean love. He thinks of Shouyou, laughing at Sunshine and dancing awkwardly with Natsu while Kageyama scowls. He thinks of Tooru, spitting venomous words at him and crying at the ball after his wedding. He thinks of Hitoka, trying to send him back to the world, thinks of the way she looks at Shimizu. He thinks of Daichi, of his easy smile and his honesty. He remembers his first impression of the Helnian prince-an open book, waiting for the wrong person to read it. 

“I’ll play.” 

Shimizu smiles. 

“Let us begin, then.” She says, and takes a seat, blue dress fanning around her legs. Suga takes his seat, opposite her. And he moves a pawn. 

It’s begun.

***

Shimizu is casual when she plays chess, only a ghost, never conversing as her fingers ghost over the pawns and knights and bishops. And she only moves pawns, which is completely unusual. Two squares first move. 

“You know,” She says, “I’ve never played chess before. Wouldn’t it be something if I beat you?” 

“Not really.” Suga replies, moving a bishop to capture one of her pawns. “Since I’ve never played either.” 

“Really? You’ve never played chess?” Shimizu asks, genuine surprise written out across her features. “But you’re a prince. Surely you must’ve-,” 

“Chess is a commoner’s game.” Suga says bluntly, weighing Shimizu’s pawn in one hand. “I am a prince, yes, but I was sheltered. The only commoner I ever consorted with was Iwaizumi Hajime, and the only reason that was allowed was because he was Tooru’s friend.” 

“Interesting,” Shimizu says, moving one of her pawns and taking one of his. “You’re full of surprises, aren’t you, Sugawara?” 

“Not really.” Suga echoes his earlier words. 

They continue in silence. 

***

Shimizu, for claiming she’s never played chess, is quite good. She’s confident in her moves, capturing ruthlessly and efficiently. She doesn’t waste time with strategy, either, which Suga notices straight away. So far, she hasn’t touched anything but her pawns. 

It’s a surprise when she moves a knight. 

They keep playing. 

***

 

When Suga captures her knight, she looks up at the eagles, where Shirabu is still human, and the the other two are still eagles. 

“Tendou!” She calls, laughing a little. “You’ve been captured.” 

Tendou squawks, and Shirabu throws his head back and laughs. Wakatoshi’s green eyes remain unchanged. Shimizu gives them all a half-smile, and turns to her left, though there’s nobody beside her. A moment later, she seems to realize this as well, shaking her head and muttering something.

It says a lot about the four of them, Suga thinks. 

***

The Queen of Faerie is frowning at him, her eyes focused on the board, and Suga has never felt so light. 

“Checkmate.” He says, and he lets out a long breath.

“Checkmate,” She echoes his words slowly, and smiles a little. “That was interesting, Sugawara. You’ve surprised me.” 

“I won.” Suga says quietly, still unable to believe it. “I won.” 

“Congratulations,” Shimizu says, waving a hand. The board dissolves into sand. “You’ve won.” 

“I want to borrow Shirabu again.” Suga tries not to stare at the sand as he makes his request. 

“ _Borrow_ Shirabu?” Shimizu laughs. “He’s not an object, Sugawara. I can order him to do something, but even then, there’s no guarantee that he’ll do it right away.” 

“I’ll do it,” Shirabu sighs, dropping from the chandelier. “I want him out of here, preferably as soon as possible. Ushijima’s looked forward a bit, and this is the quickest way to get him out of here.” 

“Is it?” Shimizu sounds annoyed now, and she begins to sweep the sand into her palms in quick movements. 

“Yes,” Shirabu’s voice is resigned, and he turns to Suga. “It is. Unfortunately. You want to contact the same people in the above world as the last time?” 

“No,” Suga replies. “Just-just Yui this time. And Shouyou, too.” 

“I don’t think you want to contact Michimiya Yui right now,” Shirabu drawls, “As she’s dealing with knives.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” 

“When I take people to your headspace,” Shirabu explains, looking extremely bored, “They are, quite literally, in your headspace. Their minds are not in their bodies. This can lead to some...unpleasant accidents.” 

Suga remembers the skeleton that he found in the kitchen, the knife shoved through its ribcage, and feels cold. Seeing something like that on its own is terrifying, but the image is made more so when he imagines that it could be Yui. 

“Wait a day,” Shirabu advises him, “Compose yourself. Think of what you want to say. I’m not doing this again for you, even if you do win at chess. It’s exhausting.” He adds, glaring at Shimizu, who shrugs. 

“Do what you will,” She says. “Ushijima! Tendou!” 

The eagles swoop down, and land on her shoulders. The one that Wakatoshi is on is still scabbing over from Shirabu’s talons, and they split open again, blood running down over Shimizu’s dress. Again, she seems unbothered, and Suga thinks there’s something disturbing about that fact. 

There’s a flash of light, and she disappears. Suga, being somewhat used to this after so much time around Shimizu, sighs and exits the throne room, heading back for his rooms, which happen to be at the other end of the palace. It’s moments like these when he wishes he could transport himself as easily as Shimizu can. 

Though he spends little to no time inside of them, his rooms are nice. Shimizu is not cruel-she’s given him a window, which reflects the odd light of Faerie, black during the day and gold during the night. There’s a desk next to it, and his bed is small and crammed to one side of the room. It goes with what he knows about the Fey-they prioritize activity over energy, and they rarely sleep at all. Whenever he sees Shimizu, there are dark circles under her eyes, and the ones under Shirabu’s are as purple and blue, like bruises. They’re always working, and indeed, though the throne room is most often empty, Shimizu is always out among her people. Suga’s never gone out with her, mostly out of annoyance and spite, though she’s offered many times. 

He finds himself wishing that perhaps he had. The Fey are keeping him captive, but it would be interesting to learn more about their culture. There are few humans who’ve been to Faerie and survived, and even fewer who have documented their discoveries. 

Hitoka would know, he thinks absently. 

Hitoka. 

Suga sits bolt upright. Hitoka’s been to Faerie. She could become a scholar on the subject. There were several months where she was trapped, and she apparently became familiar enough with the Fey to start courting the Queen of Faerie, Shimizu Kiyoko. The sky is gold, and he knows that when it fades to black, Shimizu will knock on his door and ask him if he wants to make rounds with her. 

It’s the first time he’s even thought about accepting, but he entertains the thought for a while before finally falling asleep. 

***

“Good morning,” Shimizu says from somewhere above him, and Suga wakes with a start. 

“It’s morning?” 

“It’s morning.” She confirms, a slight smile on her face. “Would you like to accompany me today?” 

“Actually,” Suga says, “I would.” 

Shimizu looks at him, clearly surprised, and he shrugs. 

“If I’m going to be here for a while, I may as well get to know what it’s like.” 

“You may as well,” She agrees. “Very well. You haven’t been too much trouble throughout the past few months, but it’s still better for you to wear a robe.” 

“A robe?” 

“They disguise humans,” Shimizu explains, snapping her fingers rapidly. “So that nobody will see you, or think that you’re invading from Miliwyn. Which they already think that you are. But we can’t help that.” She’s speaking quickly today. Everything about her is quick. “I really do wish that you’d picked a different day, you know,” She adds, frowning. “Today really isn’t the best. I’m going to the miners, and they’re going to hate you.” 

“Why?” Suga asks, and Shimizu traces something invisible with her left hand while still snapping with her right. It’s downright bizarre to watch, combined with her loose dress, heavy bracelets, and hair braided into a tight crown. She’s never dressed like this, at least not around him. 

“Humans are always taking the precious minerals out of the ground to put in their fancy crowns and necklaces. Sometimes, they’ll even take them and sell them as good luck charms. Disgusting.” Shimizu snorts, and something made of dark, heavy fabric falls into her arms. “Put this on.” 

“Why’s that disgusting?” Suga asks indignantly, but he puts it on obediently. It’s too long, and the ends brush against the ground. There’s a hood, as well, but Shimizu tells him to leave it down. 

“Honestly,” Shimizu says. “There are no magical properties to aquamarine. That’s just wishful thinking. Besides, precious gems are part of how we channel magic. It’s selfish and foolish of humans to take them. You haven’t any magic to channel.” 

“True enough.” Suga admits, and Shimizu nods. 

“Exactly.” She snaps her fingers once more, and suddenly they’re standing in the middle of a crowded street. Suga blinks in the darkness, squinting to try and see something, anything.

“Come with me,” Shimizu yells over the voices that are calling from all sides. Suga can barely make out booths, that are glittering with rubies and diamonds and quartz. It would probably be gorgeous in the daylight, he reflects. 

Or rather, the nighttime light. 

Shimizu grabs his wrist and drags him through the crowd of people. Nobody seems to recognize her, despite the fact that she’s not wearing a robe, and she’s much more important than he is. He bumps into someone, who snarls at him, revealing teeth that are sharp and glistening with saliva. Before he can scream, Shimizu yanks on his wrist, and the thing is pulled out of his line of sight.

“What was that?” He shouts at her. 

“Nothing you need to worry about!” She calls back, and the words are nearly lost among the chaos. He and Shimizu passes people with vines for hair, twigs for arms, ankles and wrists and ears dripping with gold and silver. Eventually, his eyes start to adjust, and he finally looks around. 

It’s crowded and cramped, a thousand different faeries all pushing for different booths and different destinations. Shimizu is running, and pulling him as they stumble through the mess. Up ahead, he sees a point where the road dips, not unlike a waterfall. 

“Jump!” Shimizu yells at him as they near it. 

“What?” 

“JUMP!” She screams, and then they’re plunging over the edge into nothingness.

***

Suga goes weightless for a moment, and he feels Shimizu’s grip on his wrist tightens. As they jerk to a stop, Suga hears a snap. 

Shimizu has stopped moving, and she's hovering in the blackness. 

“Careful, Sugawara,” She says, voice solemn and quiet. “It's slippery in the mines. If you slip too far, you could fall, and those who fall seldom return.” 

“What's so bad about the mines?” Suga asks. 

“It's dark,” Shimizu answers, “Darker than is normal. The faeries are darker than normal as well. I would not speak unless spoken to.” 

Suga becomes aware that they're slowly sinking towards the ground, descent barely noticeable until his feet brush the ground and he’s able to stand. Shimizu stands up calmly, and snaps her fingers. A light appears, finicky, darting in between her fingers, and her grey eyes light up. Quite literally-they light up, grey searchlights in a dark space. Still unable to see a thing, he watches Shimizu as she walks ahead. 

“Don't speak,” Shimizu reminds him quietly, and suddenly there’s a man standing in front of them, arms crossed. His eyes are dark, and he looks like somebody you wouldn't cross. 

“Ukai,” Shimizu says, and he nods. “It's been a while. How have the miners been faring this year.” 

“It's been a long year,” Ukai says gruffly. “It has not been this dry in centuries. Who are you?” He asks, directing the question at Suga, who starts. 

“M-me?” 

“Obviously you, boy. Who else would I be talking to?” 

“This is Sugawara.” Shimizu cuts in, voice cold. “I trust this will not be a problem, Ukai, after what happened the last time?” 

“No problem,” Ukai agrees easily. “I remember when Yachi Hitoka was sent aboveground. It was a time I’d rather like to forget.” 

“Visit Shirabu, if you wish to forget.” Shimizu says “I will not stop you, and he will not deny you. He remembers the pain of losing someone, I am certain.” 

“His mortal,” Ukai snorts “But that was doomed from the start, and they both knew it.” 

“In any case,” Shimizu says, not unkindly “I am not here to advise you on your question of memory. I am here to collect reports. So I ask again-how have we fared the past year?” 

Ukai sighs, and produces a thick sheaf of paper from inside his jacket. It's bound with several cords, and he hands it over delicately. Shimizu settles it between her arms, looking serene and childlike again. 

“Thank you,” She says. “I will be back tomorrow for the second half.”

As she walks away, and Suga runs to catch up, he makes the mistake of looking behind him, back at Ukai, whose eyes are narrowed into slits. He thinks he sees something in the background, rearing its head at him behind Ukai, but he isn’t sure. And it disappears too quickly for it to be real. 

“The mines are dangerous.” Shimizu’s voice breaks the silence as she reminds him. “And those who enter do not come out. Or at least, not in the same way that they entered. Shirabu will be here, midweek.” She adds. “He always comes down. It’s dangerous, Sugawara. You have to be careful where you step. A mine is a good place to hide something.” 

As they walk through the darkness, Suga thinks of those words, again and again and again. A mine is a good place to hide something. 

He thinks of the above world. He thinks of Ukai’s scowl, and the thing that was lurking behind in the darkness. 

A mine is a good place to hide something. 

“Or someone.” Shimizu adds, as though she’s been reading his mind. “People are lost to the mines all the time. And people who miss them come down….and never return.” 

The rest of their walk is in silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> once upon a time, this story had an outline that I meant to strictly follow.  
> hahahaha who needs outlines anyway  
> come talk to me on twitter @poppyrainstorm


	9. Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *eyes the new tag* it doesn't happen this chapter i swear

The sky is still black, but there are streaks of gold that are peeking up from the edge of the horizon, reaching out. Suga knows that it will probably be night soon. It’s funny, because when they started for the mines, it’d been morning. When she asks Shimizu about it, she levels him with an exasperated look. 

“Time passes differently in the mines,” She says, as though it’s obvious, “Minutes become hours, hours become days, days become weeks and months and years. Ukai doesn’t come aboveground anymore-it’s too confusing for him.” 

“He _never_ comes aboveground?” 

“Never,” Shimizu confirms. “He’s been down there for many centuries. He’s quite old,” She adds. “He’s even older than I am, actually. I should ask him about that.” 

“Was there something down there with him?” Suga asks, because uneasiness is taking a place in his chest. “It looked like-,” 

“No.” Shimizu interrupts, and her expression is troubled. “Nothing down there. Nothing except Ukai.” She speeds up.

Shimizu is walking more purposefully now, like how a queen would be expected to walk. She doesn’t run, like before-she’s precise, and the crowd parts before her, still yelling, but clearing a walkway. 

“I’m going to tell you a story,” Shimizu says abruptly, “When we get back to the palace. After all this worry, you deserve a story, I think. An explanation. A...consolation, of sorts.” 

“Consolation?” Suga hopes that the annoyance he’s feeling doesn’t leak into his voice. “I was supposed to speak with Shirabu tonight. To communicate with Yui. I want to talk to Yui.” 

“You can,” Shimizu says. “I won’t stop you. But I’ll still tell you a story. I believe I owe it to you. I think you’ll get something out of it. It is, in many ways, a story similar to yours.” 

“You said I could to talk to Yui,” Suga knows his voice is growing slightly more panicked, and he tries to force it back down. “I want to talk to Yui.” 

“Nobody here will stop you, Sugawara.” Shimizu levels an unimpressed glare at him. “But I think you’d find this interesting. Not everything that is found in the mines is worth dwelling on.” She adds. 

“Aren’t we going back tomorrow?” Suga asks her, curious. “You said you needed the second part of a report.” 

“We are,” Shimizu returns, clearly surprised. “If you still wish to accompany me.” 

“I will,” Suga replies, because there’s an idea forming in his head that he can’t shake away. “I’d like to.” 

“Ukai will be pleased,” They’re out of the street now, and Shimizu leads him down a greener path, one lined with grass and wildflowers in odd colors. “He hardly ever sees anybody except me. He likes people, though he’ll never admit it.” 

“That’s strange,” Suga says the words aloud, without thinking, and Shimizu turns back to him, a hint of warning in her stare. 

“Strange.” She repeats. “Why is that strange? Is it really that strange that a faerie would be around humans? He’s not alone down there, you know. There are others who are in your situation, Sugawara. Not your exact situation,” She amends, “But something close. Ukai is tired of them. All they do is complain. You complained as well, your first few weeks, but you have since become….more agreeable.” 

“How many others?” Suga asks, nearly running into a tree as he tries to turn around to squint at her. 

“Too many,” Shimizu says grimly. “Oh, look.” She points to the tree. “You’ve found the door. Come on, Sugawara. No time to waste.” 

Almost tentatively, she reaches a hand out towards the tree, and when it meets the bark, her hand passes into the tree. Suga should be surprised, but isn’t. Faerie is full of odd things-honestly, this isn’t the worst. 

Shimizu holds out her other hand, and Suga takes it as she drags him into the tree and the world goes violet. When the color recedes, he has to blink several times as if to dispel the last dregs of the brightness from his eyelids. They’re back in the palace, and Shimizu is grabbing at one stray paper that’s escaped from her pack. She catches it finally, and turns to him, a faint smile on her lips. 

“There are many entrances,” She says, as though she’s read his mind. “Not all of them can be accessed from the outside. It is better this way. The market sellers are not always so kind, either.” 

“Do they only sell jewels?” Suga asks, remembering the rainbow that glittered on the wrists of one faerie. 

“Yes,” Shimizu purses her lips. “It used to be different, you know. But that is a story for a different time. You want to talk to somebody, and you need Shirabu to do that. Go to your rooms-I’ll send him up.” 

She wanders away, humming under her breath and leaving Suga to stare after her. Muddy footprints are following where she walks, but soon enough Shimizu disappears behind a corridor, and the dirt is left on the soft carpet-like floors. 

Suga heads for his rooms. 

When he arrives, Shirabu isn’t there, and the windows are shut tight. The bed is still unmade from that morning, and the desk is dusty-he’s never used it once. It looks lonely. There is paper and a pen at the desk, though, so Suga sits down and picks up the pen. 

He looks at the paper for a long moment before putting the pen to it. 

_Daichi,_

_Once, when I was my mother told me that I wasn’t going to fall asleep. She said that it was all a hoax. She said that faerie magic couldn’t affect me as long as we made a deal. I was seven-I had no idea what they were suggesting. It doesn’t excuse me, though. I should’ve known._

_It turned out that their idea included selling Yachi Hitoka to Faerie. Her life in exchange for mine-it was simple. Faeries accept trade like that-they have to. I was stupid. I didn’t find out until it was too late. Shimizu Kiyoko had accepted the bargain. It was too late. I hated everything, then. Shimizu, my parents, myself._

_I’ve met Shimizu, now, at least. She isn’t unkind. I’d describe her more as blunt. I don’t think that she’s an evil temptress, or anything of that sort-she has been courting Hitoka. Though, you might already know that._

_Daichi, I don't know what to say to you._

_I don't know what you want me to say. I've been told that you love me, or you said as much before you pricked yourself. I've told you about me. Yet I know next to nothing about you. It's unfair, and I’m the one who instigated it._

_Truth be told, I don't think I’m in love with you. I don't think I can be in love with you. Shimizu tells me that I’m being foolish, that you're my true love. I don't know what to make of that, but I’ll damn well decide in my own time._

_I have a plan to wake you up. It's dangerous, and involves a mine and a monster. Perhaps it will work, Daichi. One thing is for certain about this whole situation-I will not let you die. You did not once abandon me, and I will not abandon you. No matter my feelings._

_I’ll continue to write, because though you'll never read this, it's served as a sort of relief for me._

_Shirabu is a blank page. I can never tell what he’s thinking, and Shimizu and Ukai said something in the mines. I’ll ask Ukai at a later date, probably. Any advantage, no matter how small, is a definite gain on my part. I’m grasping at air when it comes to Shirabu, Shimizu, Tendou, and Wakatoshi. There’s nothing I can say or do that will faze them. It’s a bit easier with Shimizu-she has Hitoka. As for the other three, I can think of no family members or other loved ones that might be used against them._

_The most curious part of Faerie is how they prioritize jewels. I’ve seen so many-I don’t think I knew this many existed. There’s emerald and sapphire and quartz and so many others that I don’t have names for. It’s absolutely incredible. I wonder if the kind of stone affects how much power the Fey channel through it? I’ll have to ask Shimizu._

_I’ll write again soon._

_Suga_

***

 

“Get up.” Shirabu’s voice sounds from somewhere above Suga’s head, and he jerks awake with a start, scattering paper all over the ground. 

Shirabu is standing above him, eyes bored and arms crossed. He’s leaning against the windows, and twirling Suga’s pen between two fingers, spinning it back and forth quickly. 

“I’m not getting any younger,” He says, clearly annoyed. “And I don’t want to waste my time by coming all the way up here to find you asleep. Are you ready or not?” 

“Ready,” Suga says, scrambling to his feet. “Absolutely ready.” 

“Good,” Shirabu says, and he reaches forward to grab Suga’s wrist. 

“Shirabu?” Suga asks. He’s got no idea what compels him to say it, but it’s out before he can say anything else. “What’s in the mines?” 

Shirabu’s face hardens instantly. 

“Nothing.” He replies, and there’s ice in his tone. “Gems and Ukai. Ukai and gems. That is all.” 

And he grabs Suga’s wrist. 

***

Suga’s bedroom comes into view very slowly, and the blurring greys and browns don’t really focus for quite a few moments. When they do, Yui is sitting on his bed, her eyes sleepy, but she sees him soon enough. 

“Koushi.” She says. It’s dejected, and her voice is heavy and exhausted. “Hey.” 

“What’s wrong?” 

“It’s just..it’s just been a long month. You were in our minds, and then you were gone. Yachi is becoming more and more withdrawn. Tooru is only happy when he’s with Iwaizumi-san, and even then, it’s sketchy. I’ve taken a short leave-two days at most. Daichi is still asleep, and he looks terrible. Suga, we need you to come back.” 

Her voice breaks on the last syllable, and she turns her head away. Suga looks at her for a long, long time. 

He wants so desperately to come back. 

“I can’t.” 

“I know that,” Yui says, and she turns back to him. “What did you need?” 

“There are mines down here,” Suga says, speaking rapidly, because he doesn’t want to say something wrong on the off-chance that Shirabu can see them. “They’re probably huge, and they’re dark. Used to harvest jewels. I need you to read everything you can about them, and then I need you to get Daichi down there somehow.” 

Yui gapes at him. 

“How on Earth,” She says slowly, “Am I supposed to do something like that?” 

“I don’t know-that’s why I need you to look. Ask Hitoka, as well,” He adds, “She probably knows something about it that the books don’t say. I need you to get him down there. That’s the only place that I can guarantee that everybody won’t discover him. And I need to wake him up.” 

Yui sighs, and rubs at her eyes. 

“Fine,” She replies, “I’ll ask Yachi. I’ll read up on it. I’ll get him down there. Who am I allowed to tell about this? Can I ask your parents?” 

“ _No._ ” Suga hisses, “They are not to know about this. They will shut the entire thing down and declare war again.” 

“Can I tell Tooru?”

“Fine.” Suga says. “Tooru, Hitoka, and Shouyou. Those three. Nobody else.” 

“Fair enough.” Yui responds. “Koushi?” 

“Yes?” 

“This had better work.” 

***  
Suga comes back into his mind with Shirabu leaning against a windowsill and blinking owlishly.

“What’s in the mines?” He asks, again. 

“Nothing,” Shirabu responds without missing a beat. “Jewels and Ukai.” 

“What _else_ is in the mines?” Suga presses. 

“I’m not here so that you can interrogate me.” Shirabu drawls, standing. “I think I’ll be taking my leave now.” 

“Why do you go down there?” Suga asks, following Shirabu as he heads towards the door. 

“You ask rather a lot of questions, Sugawara.” Shirabu answers, pulling the door open. 

“What’s down there that’s so important?” 

Shirabu stops. 

“Important,” He murmurs. “It’s been a long time since something has been important, Sugawara. Nothing in the mines fits that description. Used to be important, maybe. As I understand it, Her Majesty wants to tell you a story now, Sugawara. Perhaps you’ll find some sort of answer about the mines in there.” 

***

Shirabu throws the door open dramatically, and Suga walks inside tentatively. Shimizu is waiting quietly, her hands folded in her lap, and Tendou and Wakatoshi on her sides. She wears a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. He’s never been allowed inside Shimizu’s private quarters before-it’s a bit intimidating. 

“Koushi,” She greets him, and there’s something lingering in her eyes. “Have a seat.” She gestures at the rug in front of her. Her legs are crossed like a school child’s. 

“My Queen.” Suga approaches her cautiously. He’s learned that she’s volatile when she’s in a childlike state-either she’s in a good mood, one that will last a few hours, or she’s dangerous and whatever he says will set her off. He’s also taken to calling her ‘My Queen’. It’s more out of habit than nerves at this point. 

“I said I would tell you a story, didn’t I?” She asks, eyes far away. “I did.” 

“Yes, My Queen.” 

“Good.” She says, abruptly looking him in the eye. “And I intend to follow through on that. I do not go back on my word.” 

“My Queen, if I may be permitted to ask,” Tendou asks, a smirk on his face. “Why are we here?” 

“To aid me, Tendou.” Shimizu replies, narrowing her eyes. “You would rather be somewhere else, perhaps? It can be arranged. We’ll send you down to the mines with Shirabu.” 

“My Queen,” Shirabu says, and he sounds angry, or as angry as Suga’s ever heard him. 

“I do not lie,” Shimizu says bitterly, “We all know that it is where you would prefer to be, Shirabu Kenjirou. Do not lie to me.” 

Shirabu is silent. 

“Ushijima?” The Queen of Faerie does not turn her head, but it feels like she can see him turn to her. “Is there anything you’d like to contribute, before we begin?” 

“No.” Wakatoshi replies, deep voice blank. 

“Are you sure? It appears we have plenty of room for disagreement in the room. Shirabu wishes to escape to the mines, Tendou is unhappy that we must tell this story at all, and you,” Shimizu says, facing him and meeting his green eyes with her grey ones. “You are thinking of Sugawara here. Interesting that you of all three would think of another.” 

She turns away from him. 

“I apologize, Sugawara. We shall begin. I will warn you that this is not a particularly pleasant story, but I believe it is one you deserve to hear. Perhaps you will take more from it then these fools did when I told them.” She looks at the three of them, and her lip curls. 

“Then again,” Shimizu says, clearly disgusted. “Perhaps not.” 

***

This story starts, as so many do, in a little house on the outskirts of a kingdom. It was before Miliwyn or Helnia. It was many years ago. It has long escaped me quite how many. In the house, there lived a family-a young girl, her parents, and her little brother. They loved each other fiercely, as most families do. The girl and her brother were especially close, and every day they were warned by their parents to stay away from Faerie, and avoid faeries at all costs, for faeries are tricky, and will leave no prisoners.

One day, the girl found herself and her brother in a field of flowers. It was a beautiful day, and the sun shone brightly over all the wildflowers. Her brother had fallen asleep, and she laughed as the wind blew furiously behind her. It was only when she turned that she realized that somebody was facing her. A young boy, looking to be her age, with long hair and curious eyes. They were not so different, you know. And children are careless, especially at young ages. They do not think of consequences.

“Who are you?” She asked of the boy, but she was given no response. She asked again, a bit louder this time, but still found no answer. Finally, she tried a different answer. “What are you?” The little girl asked, and the boy turned to her.

“I am cursed,” He said, and there was pure misery in his tone.

When she blinked, he was gone. 

Years passed. The little girl grew into a young woman. Her brother laughed and loved and she was not ready. Her parents grew old and grey, and she was not ready. Death approached them, slow and careful, sneaking up, as Death often does. They were taken from her eventually, of course, and she wept, for they were some of the only family she had ever known.

There was a funeral, of course, and the young woman sat at their graves with her brother and remembered the boy’s words. I am cursed. I am cursed. I am cursed.

That night, when she sat at her bed and prayed, the boy appeared to her again. He had grown as well, but one thing that had not changed was the look of abject misery on his features. He might have been handsome, otherwise, you know.

She looked at him carefully, up and down. 

“I am cursed,” He repeated, and though his voice was different, the words were the same. “I am sorry for your loss.” 

“It makes no difference to me,” The young woman said bleakly, “Whether you are sorry. They are gone, and you cannot bring them back, and you did not have a hand in their deaths. There is no point in being sorry.” 

“I did have a hand in their deaths.” He replied, eyes huge. “I killed them. I am Death, and I am cursed.” 

The young woman scoffed at him. “You are not Death,” She said scornfully, “You are only a boy, and Death has no true face.” 

“There you are wrong,” He said, “I should have taken you. It was meant to be you. But I took your parents instead, for they were young and foolish.” 

“They were not foolish,” The young woman replied proudly, “They were the bravest people I knew. And you are not Death, boy. Leave me. I am grieving.” 

She blinked, and he was gone. 

A few years later, her brother was caught in an accident. He fell down into a stream and colored the water red with his blood. He was brought back to her village, but it was too late. He had already been killed. 

The boy was at the funeral as she wept again, and he looked upon her without pity, for Death has no room for pity in his soul. 

She married, and had children of her own, and one by one they were killed. Accidents, disease, death in so many ways. 

She began to believe that the boy really was Death, and that he had cursed her. 

When she was an old woman, grey and wrinkled, Death visited her one last time, and he brought a visitor. 

The visitor was unyielding. His eyes were fire and gold and everything awful. 

“You should have died years ago.” He told her, and he looked at Death, who cowered in the corner. “You have lived too long, and seen his acts. I am sorry, child.” 

“I have not lived long,” She said, “I have barely seen this life and what it has to offer me. I want more.” 

“Too long.” The man repeated. “Death has fallen from his place, and he has fallen for a mere mortal. This should have happened years ago, child.” 

And he covered her eyes with one hand and she did not speak again. 

Death covered the land in carnage for her loss, and mourned, and grieved. Death in unyielding in its scope, and this was no exception. 

Eventually, the Queen of Faerie approached him. 

“I shall make you a deal,” She said to him. “You shall love again, and you shall love harder and stronger than you ever have before. This love will ease your suffering for many years. But, as all love does, it comes with a cost.” 

“A cost.” Death repeated. 

“Yes,” The Queen said, “You shall love, but eventually your love will die. And you will suffer more than you ever have before. You will be temporarily soothed, but it will come at a greater cost. Is that an acceptable trade?” 

“Anything,” Death agreed, “Anything.” 

And so the deal was made. 

And so Death still waits for his love, day after day, year after year, century after century. This is how it always has been, and this is how it always will be.

***

“Death fell,” Shirabu says from his corner of the room. “That is not quite the end of the story, My Queen. Death fell again.” 

“Indeed.” Shimizu agrees, “Death fell, and Death lost. And he suffers greatly for it, as the Queen of Faerie proclaimed.” 

“He does.” Wakatoshi says quietly. 

“That’s enough for now.” Shimizu says, standing and dusting off her dress. “The moral of this story, Sugawara, is that sometimes love is not enough. Sometimes, love can be the killer of others in order to satisfy its hunger. Don’t do anything rash, will you?”

The last comment is seemingly random, but Suga feels it in her icy stare as he leaves, he feels in it in the temperature drop in the room, and he feels it as the gold sky darkens outside, signalling another night gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> come talk to me on twitter @poppyrainstorm


	10. Fallen

_“Suga!” Yui yells from her place under a table, brown eyes open wide. “Suga! I found Tooru!”_

_Suga abandons his place at the window to run over and peer underneath the table-sure enough, Tooru is there, scowling and wiggling out of the space._

_“Yui always finds me,” He complains. “I thought Koushi would actually do it this time. Suga, I speak as your friend when I tell you that as far as looking skills go, yours are abysmal.”_

_“Oh, I’m sorry,” Suga retorts, “I just saw that we were getting a new stable boy and was a bit distracted. Understandably, I think.”_

_“New stable boy?” Tooru races to the window and peeks out._

_Three people are walking across the sprawling palace lawn. There’s a woman with short, bright hair, and a young boy who looks a year or two younger than them. He’s holding a small toddler close to his chest, and looking around as though they’re going to be jumped by a palace guard at any moment. Both the boy and the toddler have the same wild, orange hair._

_“New stable boy,” Yui confirms. “I thought we weren’t getting him until Wednesday, though. Maybe he’s moved in early. That must happen quite a bit,” She adds. “When my mother was hired she moved us almost instantly.”_

_“True,” Tooru says thoughtfully. “I wonder what he’s like.”_

_“Wild, probably,” Yui remarks, pointing to the mop of hair on his head. “Probably from a farm family. You never know, though.”_

_“You never know,” Suga echoes, reaching out to grip the window ledge. “Do you think he’ll talk to me?”_

_“Of course he will.” Yui says, “It won’t be like last time.”_

_Like last time, when Koharu talked to him, and was executed three weeks later._

_“I think we’re missing the point here,” Tooru says impatiently, “And that is that I won. Koushi, Yui, go hide. I’ll show you how a real seeker finds people.” He says the last words with a mix of triumph and pride._

_Suga runs away, Yui close behind him. As they reach the stairwell, Tooru’s counting grows fainter, and he looks at Yui. With a nod, they split off in different directions, Yui racing towards the kitchens and Suga heading towards the stables. It’s midday, and the corridors are gleaming, portraits of Suga’s ancestors still in perfect condition on the cold stone walls._

_It’s a surprise when he crashes into the new stable boy._

_“Watch where you’re…” The boy’s voice trails off as he looks at Suga, and his mouth hangs open wide._

_“Hello!” Suga holds out a hand, hide and seek forgotten. “I’m Suga!”_

_“You’re the...you’re the prince.” The stable boy manages to say. “Your Highness!” He bows quickly and rapidly several times._

_Suga’s face falls, and he knows he’s not following his mother’s careful instructions, but he doesn’t care._

_“I’m sorry!” The stable boy blurts out. “My name is Hinata! Hinata Shouyou! I’m sorry for crashing into you, Your Highness, I-,”_

_“You don’t need to be,” Suga says, feeling strangely disappointed. “It’s fine.”_

_“No it isn’t!” The other boy’s face is redder than the roses that Suga’s mother grows in the gardens. “You’re the prince! The one that we hear about in the village! You’re the-,”_

_“The cursed prince.” Suga supplies the answer gloomily. “I know.”_

_“No,” Hinata says, clearly confused. “Cursed? What are you talking about?”_

_“Cursed.” Suga repeats, “I’m cursed. Isn’t that what everybody hears?”_

_“You’re the reason that faeries have stopped coming above.” Hinata says, eyes huge. “Aren’t you? Mother said that was true. Everybody says it’s true. I wanted to thank you.”_

_“I’m...I’m the reason-what?” Suga stammers._

_“My father was taken by a faerie.” Hinata replies seriously, hands on his hips. “He was taken away when I was three. Natsu was still just a baby. My mother was devastated. I don’t remember him at all. That all stopped happening because of you, didn’t it?”_

_Suga thinks back on it for a moment. The timing makes sense-if he was cursed, then slowly faerie activity would stop in the human world. They wouldn’t want to go anywhere that the Queen of Faerie had intervened in._

_He knows about Faerie. He’s heard stories. He just always thought that they were farfetched and ridiculous-old wives’ tales._

_“I guess.” He says. “I hadn’t thought of it that way.”_

_“Exactly!” Hinata says, eyes bright._

_“Thank you, Hinata.” Suga feels oddly reassured, the affirmation that the village thinks that he’s done something right lifting something off his shoulders._

_“It’s just Shouyou.” The other boy looks at him somewhat shyly. “I have a sister, too! She’s really small, though-I don’t know if she’d know what it means to meet you. Her name is Natsu. She looks like me! Do you have any siblings?”_

_“No.” Suga says. “I’ve always wanted them. I think my parents might have just been too scared after me to have another child. I understand, I guess. I have Tooru and Yui. They’re like siblings.”_

_“Prince Oikawa Tooru?” Shouyou’s eyes are huge. “I’ve heard about him! All the girls in our village say they’re in love with him.”_

_“He’s a pain in the ass,” Suga snorts, thinking of Tooru’s huge grin, which is oftentimes just as fake as his own._

_Shouyou gapes at him. “You said that about a prince,” He says, slightly awed._

_“I’m a prince,” Suga points out. “And I’ve known Tooru for two years now. I’m allowed to call him out for what he is.”_

_“Koushi!” Tooru’s voice echoes down the hall._

_“Speak of the devil.” Suga mutters, and turns away from Shouyou, whose jaw looks like it might hit the ground at any moment._

_“I found you!” Tooru cries triumphantly, and runs down to meet Suga, Yui behind him. “And you found the stable boy.” He adds, peering over Suga’s shoulder at Shouyou._

_There’s silence for a moment, before Yui slips around Tooru and Suga._

_“Hello!” She says cheerfully, holding out a hand. “I’m Michimiya Yui! You’re our new stable boy? That used to be my brother’s job!”_

_“Hinata Shouyou.” Shouyou holds out a hand, looking marginally more comfortable around Yui. “Used to be? What happened?”_

_“Oh.” Yui shrugs. “He works in the kitchens with me now. He didn’t die or anything!” She adds quickly, catching the look on Shouyou’s face._

_As Shouyou sputters about how he’d never thought about that, and Yui laughs, the sound high and clear, Suga has the odd feeling that he and Tooru are left out, somehow._

***

“You’re not subtle, Sugawara.” Shirabu’s voice is disdainful, and his arms are crossed. The darkness of day is taking over the gold night light, and Suga has one hand on the door as Shirabu looks at him. 

“I don’t-,” 

“Of course you do.” Shirabu pushes off the wall and strides up to Suga’s side. “As long as you’re going down, I may as well go with you. Her Majesty is otherwise occupied, and I’m due down there for a visit. She’ll be mad if she knows that you went without her permission, though.” 

“I don’t care.” Suga snaps, feeling heat rush to his cheeks. “I’m going back down there.”

“Good.” Shirabu says, pushing the huge double doors open. “That’s the spirit. I hate indecisive humans.” 

He gestures out the door, and Suga follows, hands twisting together in anticipation. It’s been a week since he’s talked to Yui, and the main plan is just to explore a bit more of the mines. In the back of his head, he hears Shimizu’s words. 

_If you slip, you could fall, and those who fall seldom return._

I have already fallen, Suga thinks bitterly. I have fallen into this place and I cannot figure out how to escape. 

_Those who fall seldom return._

Suga swears he can see her dark grey eyes watching him as he leaves, but he tells himself it’s just paranoia. There’s no way. Besides, he’s with Shirabu. 

Who is currently walking several paces ahead of him, and humming something, mouth twisted into a frown. Come to think of it, Suga still doesn’t know why Shirabu visits the mines. It’s still a bit of a mystery, but at this point, he cares more about waking Daichi up then finding out everything that’s going on with Shirabu’s (undoubtedly) long and dark past. 

At first, he was concerned, and it was more out of concern than anything else that he’d care to unravel that he wanted to wake Daichi up. He does consider them friends, but Daichi has said that he loves Suga, at least according to his friends-whom he does consider reliable sources. Tooru and Yui wouldn’t lie to him about something like that. Now, it’s more out a combined desperation and that uncomfortable tangle of emotions that lies in the pit of his stomach. Suga doesn’t want to sort it out, and at this point, doesn’t even know if he can without a fully awake Daichi there to help him sort the mess out.

“Keep up, Sugawara.” Shirabu snaps from ahead of him. “I don’t drag you places out of pleasure, and I hope you know that.” 

“I’m fully aware.” 

“Good.” Shirabu veers off the paved path, and begins to cut through the trees, ducking under branches and snapping twigs off trees with violet leaves, dropping them to the ground, where they disintegrate into piles of ash that he drives his boots into. 

Shirabu does not venture too far from Suga at any given time, although he avoids the plant life, and when they reach the path to the market, it’s remarkably quiet. 

“Stay close to me,” Shirabu snaps. “Don’t talk to anyone, don’t take anything, and don’t look anybody directly in the eyes. You never know who comes here, and you never know quite what they deal.” 

As soon as Shirabu steps out onto the path, everything goes silent. With Shimizu’s presence, despite being the Queen of Faerie, life had carried on. Now, it’s as if somebody has frozen everything, for nobody moves, and nobody speaks to either of them as they pass. When they reach the gap, Shirabu looks at him distastefully. 

“It’s a long way down. Keep up.” 

Suga is shivering slightly by now-partly with anticipation, partly with the sudden chill that sneaks up behind him. 

Shimizu jumped with him. 

Shirabu pushes him down. 

The darkness closes over his head, and all Suga can think of is Daichi, the name in time with his heartbeat. 

***

 

“You know where you’re going?” Shirabu asks as they reach the bottom. His fingers are tapping together almost nervously, and he keeps looking around, eyes narrowed. “I don’t want to have to make another trip around this hellhole to try and find you.” 

“I know where I’m going.” Suga lies easily. His mother has taught him to lie nearly as well as she’s taught him to smile. “I’ll be back soon.” 

_Those who fall seldom return._

“If I have to come find you,” Shirabu warns, “If Ukai has to come find you. If you interrupt me because you got lost. If you try to sneak out somehow. I will know. I will find you. And I will not leave you to Her Majesty. Am I clear?” 

“What’s in the mines, Shirabu?” It’s worth asking the question once more, and it appears that it’s the right time to ask, because Shirabu’s shoulders slump, and his fingers freeze in their nervous tapping. 

“Jewels,” He says, “Ukai, and jewels, and memories that we’d rather forget.” 

Turning, he starts to walk away. Suga is left, in the dark, before something hits him in the shoulder. 

It’s a small flame, Suga realizes, watching it burn on the ground. But it shouldn’t be possible, and it didn’t travel like a flame does. 

“Or perhaps it does,” Ukai grunts from behind him, and Suga yells, spinning around to face the faerie, who’s smoking a pipe and looking extremely annoyed. “What are you doing back here? And alone, too?” 

“I’m not alone,” Suga chokes out, heart in his throat. “I’m here with Shirabu.” 

“You’re joking.” Ukai says, laughing a little and letting the smoke surround his face. “Shirabu doesn’t bring people down to the mines with him.” 

“He brought me.” Suga straightens a little bit. “He just told me not to get lost, not to sneak out, and not to interrupt him.” 

“That sounds like Shirabu,” Ukai agrees, “But what reason does he have to bring a spoiled human down here?” 

Suga shrugs. “I’ve no idea.” 

“Let me rephrase the question,” Ukai says, removing the pipe from his mouth and leaning a little closer. “What business do you have in the mines, Sugawara Koushi?” 

It’s disconcerting. 

“I..I want to find somebody again.” The words slip out without his consent. 

“Interesting.” The mines are dark and Ukai picks up the tiny flame as he takes a small step back. “We get bodies down here all the time. You’d like to look at some, perhaps? You may find the person you’re looking for, though there is a danger that they’ll be a bit less...alive than you’re used to.” 

“They’re dead.” 

“Dead,” Ukai echoes Suga’s shrug. “Comatose. Mind been snapped. Bones been broken. Cursed, poisoned, forever doomed to stay in that half space between life and dead. Take your pick. They’re not able to function as whatever the hell they were before.” 

“I’d like to see some of them,” Suga says, heart picking up speed. Comatose. Cursed. Daichi, Daichi, Daichi. 

“I won’t stop you.” Ukai walks away, still holding the flame, which casts odd shadows on the mine walls, and Suga scrambles to keep up, nearly tripping over his own feet. 

“What’s in the mines, Ukai?” 

“Jewels,” Ukai replies, “Me. Bodies and memories. Souls. Some of the Queen’s cursed ones.” 

“Souls?” 

“Every being has a soul,” Ukai explains, boots crunching on rocks as they walk, “And most of them, when their lives end, well. They’ll end up here.” He shrugs. “They’re in the jewels that are sold at the market. That’s why they conduct energy so well.” 

“These are...people?” Suga backs away from a wall rapidly. 

“Relax,” Ukai scowls at him, and they keep walking. The air is freezing, and Suga can’t feel his fingertips anymore. 

“Are we almost there?” He asks, shivering. 

“No ‘almost’ about it.” Ukai replies, and he steps back. Suga freezes, because suddenly there’s something that wasn’t there before. 

A giant pile of corpses. 

Some are withered and dying. Some are new and their eyes are still open, some amber, some turquoise. He can see a hand poking out from beneath what is clearly a human body. There’s blood on some, and others are stained with grass or water or vomit. 

“This is only the ones from the past week.” Ukai says grimly. “Perhaps your person is here. If you don’t move for a while, if you stay still in this room, you’ll start to become one of them. I trust that you won’t let that happen.” 

“N-no.” Suga says, voice shaking. 

“Good.” Ukai turns around. “I’ll leave the flame. Don’t stay too long, Sugawara. The bodies can do strange things to your mind.” 

He turns and leaves, and then it’s just Suga and the eerie shadows that are cast against the walls and the sickening stench of death. 

***

 

“Daichi, where are you?” Suga murmurs as he pulls bodies aside. “Yui, please tell me you got him here. Please, Yui, please.” 

He doesn’t even know who he’s talking to anymore-all he really knows at this point is that it’s begging. He wants to see Daichi again. 

There’s a faerie wearing bright aquamarine earrings are practically hanging out of her ears, whom he pushes aside carelessly. There’s a man with a sword in one hand, who’s got blood crusting the side of his mouth. A young woman with burned features and brown hair. Suga keeps sifting through the bodies-they’re endless in number, and none of them is Daichi. 

Until it is.

Sawamura Daichi is pale, and his eyes are closed. He’s breathing, thank God, and he’s still holding what looks like a long rod of wood. Suga goes cold when he realizes what it is, and he rips it out of Daichi’s grasp, cracking it under his shoes. 

Daichi, Daichi, Daichi. 

Suga pulls him down from the pile of bodies, tripping over limbs and jewelry and armor, and not caring at all as he tumbles down, pulling Daichi’s body with him as they fall the rest of the way down. 

Daichi lands on his back, and Suga lands next to him, with a hard thump that knocks the breath out of him. He scrambles over to Daichi’s body and looks at him only once before he leans over and presses his lips against Daichi’s, praying for it to work, praying for Daichi to wake up. 

There’s a long moment when he thinks it hasn’t worked. 

And then Daichi gasps, and Suga lets out a noise that’s half sob, half strangled laugh. 

“Suga?” His voice is scratchy, but he’s so very alive that Suga wants to cry, and he does, tears streaming down his face as he clings to Daichi. 

“Daichi.” He says, and leans down to kiss Daichi again. 

This kiss is more desperation than anything else. It’s Suga’s hands scrambling for purchase against Daichi’s shirt, and it’s the pent-up worry and stress of the past few months. It’s Daichi kissing him back, and it’s the silent words that he doesn’t say. It’s _I missed you_ , and _I’m sorry._ It’s the feeling of Daichi’s mouth against his own, the heat that starts in his chest. It’s the small, needy noise that Suga makes when Daichi parts his lips, and it’s this strange feeling of urgency that is so present. 

When they break apart, Daichi is smiling, and Suga wants to kiss him again. 

He thinks of Shimizu’s words. 

_The only one denying it at this point is you._

“I love you,” He blurts out, unplanned and messy, and the words hang in the air for a moment before Daichi starts to laugh. 

“Sugawara Koushi,” He says, voice shaking slightly. “You-you are absolutely-,” 

“What?” Suga asks, and he’s still half-crying, but he doesn’t care, because Daichi is awake, is finally awake, and nothing is ever going to change that again. 

“Unpredictable,” Daichi says. “You are utterly unpredictable.” 

Suga lays his head on Daichi’s chest, just to be able to hear his heartbeat. Alive, alive, alive. It’s steady, unwavering.

“I know.” 

“I’m sorry,” Daichi’s eyes are turned towards the ceiling, and his face is unreadable. “I shouldn’t have pricked myself.” 

“No, you shouldn’t have.” Suga mutters halfheartedly. “But I’m glad you’re here. I thought Yui was going to leave you up there forever.” 

“Yui?” 

“She got you down here.” Suga explains. “At least, I assume she did.” 

“Michimiya Yui?” A voice echoes from the entrance, and Suga sits bolt upright. 

He’s well and thoroughly _finished_ being startled by the Fey. 

This time it’s Shirabu, and his brown eyes are wide and surprised. “Michimiya Yui?” He repeats, and he sounds unsteady. Daichi doesn’t say a word, but his gaze flickers between them. 

“Yes.” Suga’s voice is slow as he says the word. “Michimiya Yui. You know her mind, I know-you’ve taken her inside my mind before.” 

“Michimiya Yui,” Shirabu says, clearly surprised. “Michimiya Yui is behind you. I-I didn’t know-she-Her Majesty.” He backs up a step, and for the first time ever, there’s fear in his eyes. “We have to leave, Sugawara. We have to leave right now. Don’t turn around.” 

Suga turns around. 

At first, it doesn’t register in his mind. There’s a pile of bodies behind him-he’s been through it several times. He remembers the young woman, and a sick feeling begins in the pit of his stomach. 

No. 

It’s Yui, her eyes unseeing, and her hair mussed. Her face has been burned, and the skin on her arms is gone, revealing muscle and bone. It looks as though she’s been there a few days. 

Suga is crying again, and it won't stop, won't stop. 

_Eyes in a jar, calling his name, nightmares, nightmares, nightmares._

Yui.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i swear it gets better from here  
> come talk to me on twitter @poppyrainstorm


	11. Ice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i'm not dead!!
> 
> and neither is this fic!!
> 
> i'm sorry for not updating for a while. it's been a not-great couple of weeks mentally, but i finally managed to get this up, so! that's good!
> 
> in other news, that whole once-a-week thing....isn't going to work anymore. 
> 
> again, i'm sorry for going silent on this, but hopefully you guys enjoy this!

Bone is showing, white and cold, and Suga is crying and gasping and he can’t breathe, can’t breathe. 

He lost Yui. 

How is it possible that he lost Yui? She wasn’t supposed to come down here with them. Shirabu is staring at him, eyes huge and lost, and Suga is crying next to Yui’s corpse, and Daichi is alive, but Yui is dead and cold and it’s every single one of his nightmares come to life. Horrific. 

“I’m sorry,” Shirabu whispers, and he backs against the wall. 

“Did you do this?” Suga chokes out, turning his gaze up to Shirabu. “Did you do this, you absolute _bastard?_ ” 

“No.” Shirabu says, and his knuckles are white against the gems embedded in the walls. “I could have stopped it, though. I could’ve told him not to. He listens to me. He would’ve listened.” 

“You,” Suga chokes the words out, and his lungs feel like they’re trying to forcibly eject themselves from his body and his heart hurts.

“I’m sorry,” Shirabu’s voice is a murmur, and it’s edged with terror. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. This wasn’t part of the deal. I’m sorry.” 

“You killed her,” Suga growls, and his voice comes out as a feral thing, one that he doesn’t recognize. Daichi blinks at him, and stands up, albeit a bit unsteadily. 

“Suga,” He says. 

“I’m sorry,” Shirabu says, and his back hits the wall. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Ukai. please get Ukai. Or Shimizu. Please, please, please.” 

“You killed her,” Suga whispers. “You killed her or left her for dead and you’re asking for Shimizu and Ukai.” 

“Shimizu,” Shirabu gestures frantically, hands trembling. “Yes. Shimizu. My Queen. I didn’t think he’d do it, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” 

“Yui,” Suga whispers. 

***

_It’s Suga’s birthday, and he doesn’t like being five, because nobody will come near him at all. They all avoid him like he’s caught the plague. He wants the comfort of the palace back, but his mother has insisted on having him socialize with other children. It’s backfired, clearly._

_A girl his age with short brown hair scrambles towards him, nearly tripping over her skirt, and stands in front of him, hands fisted into her blue skirt, hair hidden beneath a handkerchief. She looks scared, but she’s standing in front of him, which is more than anybody else has done._

_Cursed, cursed, cursed._

_“H-hello!” She stutters, holding out a hand rigidly. “I’m Michimiya! Yui! Michimiya Yui! It’s nice to meet you, Prince Sugawara!”_

_Suga looks at her for a long moment before taking her hand._

_“It’s nice to meet you too.” He says gloomily. “You’re the only one I’ve met so far.”_

_Michimiya’s eyes widen, and she loses a bit of the stiffness in her frame. “Really?”_

_“Really.”_

_“Why?” Her voice is honest and curious-there’s no trickery or guile in it, as there always is in the voices of adults._

_“You should ask my parents,” He says, because at five, he’s already tired of explaining his story. Curses and faeries and spindles are tiring._

_“I want to hear it from you.” Michimiya replies brightly, sitting down next to him, folding her hands in her lap. Her posture isn’t straight-she’s slumped over a bit, curling into herself, and Suga thinks that it makes her seem more human, almost. Everybody he knows sits straight-backed, as though it physically hurts them to slump._

_“They all know that I got cursed.” He says. “All of them. I got cursed, and I’m going to fall asleep one day and drag everybody down with me. That’s what Father says, anyway.”_

_“You father tells you that?” Michimiya asks him, curious, not teasing like most people are. “My father doesn’t tell me anything. He left when I was still really young. My mother too.”_

_Suga looks at her, confused. “But then who do you live with?”_

_“My brother.” Michimiya says excitedly, and she straightens up a little bit. “I got a job in town a few days ago! Did I tell you that?”_

_“No,” Suga says, briefly baffled as to why she’s telling him this._

_“It’s a real job,” Michimiya continues, and she’s practically vibrating with happiness beside him. “Takeda, our baker, needed some help, and I volunteered, because anybody can crack an egg, right?”_

_“Anybody can crack an egg,” Suga echoes, almost mindlessly. “Michimiya-chan, do you want to see our kitchens?”_

_Michimiya’s eyes get huge, and she flushes a dull red color._

_“Y-you don’t have to call me Michimiya-chan,” She mutters, looking almost embarrassed. “Nobody’s ever called me that before. But I’d love to see the kitchens!” She sits up straight and smiles._

_When Michimiya smiles, it’s a whole body action. It’s not perfect, like his mother’s-her nose crinkles, and her eyes open a little too wide, but, like the slump, it humanizes her. His mother and father are solid like marble statues-they do not waver, and they are colder than stone. Michimiya is different. She is unsteady ground. He can’t be sure what she’ll do, but he can be sure that no matter what, she’s going to be surprising._

_“Come on,” He says, rising to his feet. “I’ll show you.”_

***

 

Back at the palace, Shimizu stands in front of him, holding a long staff and frowning at him. 

“Explain,” She says, voice tight and clipped. 

“My Queen,” Shirabu begins, but Shimizu cuts him off, bringing her staff down in a tight arc and slamming it against the floor, where it echoes with a loud clang. 

“I don’t want to hear it from you,” She says, “You’re very clearly biased in this scenario, Shirabu. I want to hear it from Sugawara. Tell me. Now.” Her voice is quiet, but it carries. 

“I….I woke Daichi up.” Suga is thoroughly exhausted, and he doesn’t really know what’s happening, but he talks, voice hoarse from screaming. “I woke Daichi up, and Shirabu came, and Yui is dead.” 

“I see,” Shimizu says, though clearly she doesn’t. “Shirabu, care to add onto that?” Her grey eyes burn into him. 

“I apologize,” Shirabu whispers. “I let him go for a moment, and he was hungry. He killed a woman, who I presume is the Yui that Sugawara speaks of. I apologize,” He repeats. “I froze the room, and brought Sugawara back immediately.” 

“Froze the room?” Suga asks. 

“He stopped time,” Shimizu answers, and her voice is icy. “He stopped time in that room. Or, rather, he didn’t. Someone else did.” 

“I don’t care who did it.” Suga whispers. “I want Yui back.” 

“Death has taken her,” Shimizu says, “And even I cannot reason with Death. Shirabu could, but he’s clearly not inclined to, so you’re out of luck, Sugawara. She’s dead.” 

“Shirabu?” 

“I am not talking to him while he’s in this kind of mood.” Shirabu says, crossing his arms. “I’m sorry, My Queen, but I must refuse.” 

“I’m not going near him,” Shimizu says. “Sugawara, if you’d like to have Michimiya Yui back, you’ll have to get her back yourself, because the closest person to Death just refused you, and I have no sway over him.” 

“Closest person to Death?” Suga looks at Shirabu. “You could get her back.” 

“Won’t is more like it,” Wakatoshi says from the door, and Suga nearly jumps out of his skin. 

“Ushijima,” Shimizu says, and her grip tightens a bit on her staff. “You’ve seen fit to join us, I see.” 

“It’s not that I won’t,” Shirabu replies, eyes narrowed. “It’s that I don’t want to approach him when he’s in this kind of a mood. He won’t react well.” 

“In other words,” Shimizu summarizes, “You won’t.” 

“I-,” 

“It’s of no consequence to either of us,” Wakatoshi says, deep voice indifferent. “But I believe it makes a great deal of difference to Sugawara.” 

“He can get Yui back?” Suga demands, pointing at Shirabu. “How?” 

“I can’t get her back!” Shirabu snaps. “It would be suicide-how can you not see that? He won’t listen to me!” 

“He would,” Wakatoshi says. 

“Enough!” Shimizu shouts, and she slams her staff against the floor again. 

There’s silence. 

“Sugawara,” Wakatoshi says, “Do you remember the story that Her Majesty told you?” 

“I do.” 

“Do you remember the ending?” 

“Of course,” His frustration seems to boil over now, but Suga supposes it’s been stewing for a while now. “Death fell again, and every day he suffers for it. What does this have to do with Yui?” 

“Everything,” Shirabu says abruptly, “As I am Death’s lover, and therefore the only one with any sway over him.” 

“You-,” 

“It wasn’t on purpose, Sugawara,” Shirabu’s voice is tired. “Did you fall for your Daichi on purpose? It was a single summer, and it was meant to be over with that.” 

“You were foolish,” Shimizu retorts, “You know better, Kenjirou, and you damn well knew better back then.” 

“And what if I did?” Shirabu turns his face, and Suga feels like he’s entered a conversation that’s been going on for centuries before, a conversation that has nothing to do with Yui. Yui is dead, dead, dead, and maybe coming back, but maybe not. Shirabu’s voice rises, and suddenly anger rises up in Suga, fire bright and horrible. 

“Could you bring Yui back?!” He screams, and his voice echoes off the walls. “Could you bring back my best friend or not?” He’s crying now, and he leans against the walls, burying his head in his hands. 

“No,” Shirabu responds. “She’s dead. That was the first rule. Never interfere with the circle of life and death. I will not interfere. I will not risk my life for that of your friend.” 

“Sugawara,” Shimizu says, and there’s worry in her tone now. “Maybe you should go back to your rooms.” 

“It doesn’t matter,” Suga says bleakly. “It doesn’t matter. Take me back. I want to see Yui.” 

“Shirabu,” Shimizu says, and she gestures towards Suga. “Take him back. We don’t need him here at present.” 

“I want to go back!” Suga yells, and his voice is breaking halfway through the sentence. “I want to go back, take me back, take me back, take me-,” 

Shirabu reaches him halfway through, and touches his shoulder, and it all goes dark.

 

***

 

_“Suga?”_

_“Yeah?”_

_“Do you ever think about love?”_

_“No, not really. Why?”_

_“You’re going to get woken up one day by someone. Someone you love. You don’t ever think about that? Never?”_

_“Not really. Here.”_

_Yui takes the sugar rose that he offers her. Yesterday was a banquet, and those are never any fun. He can’t spend time with Yui at a banquet. And she’d had some sugar left over from the cake, and the cook hadn’t minded, so now they’re here. On the battlements. Eating leftover cake._

_It’s not a bad place to be._

_“Yui?”_

_“Yeah?”_

_“How’s your brother doing?”_

_Her shoulders sag._

_“I...I don’t….” She stutters for a few moments, as if she’s searching for the right words. Suga doesn’t know the right words to give her. Her brother’s been sick for the past month, and the doctors think that it’s fatal, but Yui is always saying that he’s going to make it._

_“Yui?”_

_“He, um. He died this morning.”_

_“Oh.”_

_“Yeah.”_

_“I’m-,”_

_“Don’t.” Yui cuts him off. “I don’t-I don’t want your condolences. It’s, um, it’s not something that you should be worrying about. They-they probably won’t even give him a proper funeral,” She admits, the words all coming out in a rush. “They’ll probably just throw his body in the dump, so there’s-there’s that.” Her breath hitches, but she doesn’t cry._

_Michimiya Yui is one of the strongest people he knows._

_“I’m sorry.”_

_“I already told you. You don’t need to be sorry. It’s not your fault. It just...it feels kind of like the world hates me.” She sniffles, and her eyes are glittering with tears, but they don’t fall._

_“Do you want me to leave you alone?”_

_She shakes her head._

_“Do you want a hug?”_

_Nod._

_And so Suga hugs her, and Yui cries silently, not a single noise escaping her, but the tears trickling down her face. It’s the first time in his life that Yui hasn’t been a pillar of strength, and he accepts it. His mother is always fake, but Yui is always real, and being real means that sometimes you break down. Yui always tells him that being real means that you’re allowed to cry when he asks. When he’s brave enough to ask, that is._

_Sometimes Yui feels like the only real thing. She’s his best friend._

_So he hugs her, and she hugs him, and she cries on the battlements, the day after her birthday. The day of her brother’s death._

_***_

_Yui is right. They don’t give him a proper burial. They didn’t give her parents burials, and they don’t give her brother one. Suga is stuck inside, but he watches as the undertaker fills in neat graves in the cemetery, which is only open to the royals. He thinks of Yui’s brother._

_***_

_“I don’t understand him. How do I understand someone like him?” Suga paces back and forth, back and forth, while Yui watches him from her place by the washbasin._

_“I don’t know, Suga.” She says, sighing. “Tooru is only a prince. He’s just like you. Why don’t you just talk to him?”_

_“I can’t talk to him!” Suga throws up his hands. “How do you talk to someone like Tooru?”_

_“Iwaizumi Hajime does,” Yui says calmly as she coats her hands with soap bubbles carefully. “It’s the talk of the town. Haven’t you heard? Everyone thinks that they’re courting.”_

_“I don’t-what?”_

_“Personally,” Yui replies, “I don’t think the rumors have any truth to them. Iwaizumi and Tooru are just friends. Maybe they’ll be more in the future, but for now, they’re just friends. Anyway, Tooru’s been here for four years. Why is this just now a problem?”_

_“Because he changed,” Suga says, coming to stand beside her as she rinses her hands off. “And I don’t know when. He’s more confident now. He has a smile like my mother’s, and I don’t know what to make of it.”_

_“Ah,” There’s a hint of a smile in her tone as she looks at him. “He’s changed, and you haven’t changed along with him. That’s the real problem here.”_

_“I don’t know when he stopped being Tooru.” Suga says wearily._

_“I don’t either,” Yui says briskly, “Because he’s still Tooru. He’s still the obnoxious boy that we played hide and seek with. He’s still the idiot who tried to climb the tree out front because you dared him to. He’s still Tooru. He’s just...a little older, is all.”_

_“A little older and very different.”_

_“Not that different.” Yui replies, rubbing at her wrists with her apron. “Go talk to him. I’ve known you for years, Suga, and usually when you’re worried, you isolate yourself. I’m telling you now. Go talk to him.”_

_“But what if-,”_

_“What if nothing.” Yui interrupts. “I’ll be right here when you get back, but I won’t talk to you again until you talk to Tooru. He’s probably in the South Tower. Go.”_

_And Suga goes._

_Yui is right, as usual, he thinks as he climbs the steps._

_Yui is almost always right about the things that really matter._

***

 

When he wakes up, he’s back in his rooms. Shirabu is sitting on the bed, and looking at his hands, which are neatly folded in his lap. 

“I want her back,” Suga rasps, and his voice is rusty from disuse. 

Shirabu stands, and walks over to kneel next to him. 

There’s a sharp noise, and Suga registers that before he recognizes the pain, and realizes that Shirabu has slapped him across the face. His hand is drawn back, and his face is tightly closed as he looks at Suga. 

“Look at me,” Shirabu says. “She. Is. Gone.”

“Give her-,” 

Shirabu slaps him again. 

“Shut up. Look at me. She isn’t coming back, Sugawara. She’s gone. You think you know pain? I have known pain that is ten times worse than anything you could ever experience. It is a cruel punishment to love Death, you know.” 

“She’s gone,” Suga says, and he doesn’t even have it in him to cry anymore. There’s nothing in his stomach to throw up, but he still feels nauseous. It’s the first time he’s said it aloud.

“That’s right.” Shirabu says, and there’s something vaguely sympathetic in his voice. He sits, crosses his legs. “She’s gone.” 

“Where’s Daichi?” 

“Daichi is back in the cave where we left him. You can see him tonight, if you really want. For now, we’re going to wait here. I don’t care what you do.” 

Suga sits against the wall, and thinks of Yui and Daichi.

Back slumped, eyes still wet with tears. 

He’s real. 

Like Yui was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> come talk to me @poppyrainstorm on twitter


	12. Ground Zero

As it turns out, Shirabu really did freeze time in the cave and that means that he needs Shirabu to reenter it, so Suga goes back later that night. 

Or tries to. 

“No.” Shimizu says. “Absolutely not. You’d need Shirabu, at least to reach Death, who’s the entity who truly froze time. Trust me, Sugawara. I’ll get him out. Just not...now.” 

“He said that I could!” Suga says indignantly. “Yesterday! He said that I could go tonight!” 

“I don’t care what he said _then._ ” Shimizu snaps. “I am his Queen. We’ve talked about it, Sugawara-and no, you aren’t privy to every conversation we hold-and he has decided that it is perhaps better that you stay away from there for a while. With your current...emotional state. He changes his mind frequently. Get used to it.” The last words are bitter and forced. 

“There has to be something I can do to change his mind.” Suga insists, and Shimizu closes her eyes for a long moment before looking at him again. 

“He’s fickle. You can’t do this without him. And he’s said no. _We’ve_ said no.” 

“Why are you insistent on denying me this?” Suga asks furiously. “My best friend _died_ last night. The only other human in this realm is trapped in a cave in the middle of the ground and I can’t even get to him, apparently, because you _changed your mind._ ”

“That’s correct.” 

“He won’t-,” 

“I want to hear that from him.” Suga says. “I don’t know that you aren’t lying, Your Majesty, and quite frankly, I don’t trust you.” 

“You can’t.” Shimizu says quietly. “Shirabu has left us temporarily.”

Her voice hesitates over the last words for a moment before she turns away from him. 

“Why do you keep doing this? Why is he the key to everything?” Suga’s frustration spills over, and he snaps. “Why is Shirabu the answer?” 

“He has connections.” Shimizu says, evading his gaze and his first question. “He’s consorting with Death. I have power, but power is meaningless if you have no allies. Shirabu has allies-well, allies of a sort. I have power. Together, we would be the perfect faerie. But you know how this goes. He dies, or I die, and then one is left. One is ruling. Currently it’s me. Who knows how things will look three months from now.” 

“Shirabu is trying to kill you?” 

“I never said that. He’s poised to take over when I die. I’ve set it up this way deliberately. Obviously, he wouldn’t be my first choice, but he’s the logical one.” 

“The logical one,” Suga repeats. “And he knows about this?” 

“Of course,” Shimizu sounds irritated now, and she looks at him through slitted eyes. “Why wouldn’t he? Sugawara, I suggest that if you’d care to see your prince again, you approach him directly.” 

“He’s avoiding me,” Suga says. 

“Well, that’s nothing I can help.” And she turns away, face half-hidden behind a curtain of dark hair, and eyes shaded. 

Suga goes back to his rooms, feeling frustrated and cold. 

***

_Dear Daichi,_

_I’m coming for you. I promise I’m coming for you. I don’t care how long it takes. I don’t care what Shimizu and Shirabu say. I’m coming for you._

_I don’t make promises anymore. I remember the times that I did. I remember the times when Yui and I would laugh and talk in the gardens and when I promised her that I’d never leave her._

_Yui is dead now. It’s not your fault. Logically, I know that it’s not your fault. It’s not Shirabu’s fault either. I still don’t understand why he was so shaken in the caverns. Why did Yui come down with you, Daichi? Why did she risk her life? How did you end up in the mines to begin with? They’re dangerous. Souls are down there. That’s what Ukai said, anyway._

_I don’t know why I’m writing to you. You’ll never get this letter, at least not if I can help it. I say too much. You’d think horrible things about me. They’re probably true. Probably._

_You’re frozen in a cave, my best friend is dead, and I’m in a palace with people who won’t talk to me._

_Daichi, I’m almost certain that I’m in love with you._

_I don’t know if that’s a good thing yet, but I know that it’s true._

_You’re a genuinely good person. You have a life ahead of you outside of this hellhole, and I know that you can reach it. I don’t deserve you, Daichi. But I want you anyway._

_That particular thought depresses me._

_I’m going to get you out of there. I promise._

_For whatever a promise from me is worth._

_Love,_

_Suga_

***

 

“Sugawara Koushi?” A voice says from the doorway, and he turns to find a young woman standing there, short blond hair hanging around her ears, and arms crossed over her chest. She’s looking at the room curiously, and dangling from her ears are two twin ruby earrings that draw light from the corners of the room. 

“Yes?” 

“Oh, good. I got the right room. Her Majesty would kill me if I hadn’t.” She swaggers into the room, and casts a look at his desk. 

“Writing, are we?” 

“Who are you?” Suga flips the sheet of paper over and glares at her. 

“Relax, kid. Tanaka Saeko. Just call me Saeko.” She holds out a hand. “My brother’s outside, so even if you get past me-which is pretty much impossible-you’d have to go through him. Oi, Ryuu!” She yells, and sticks her head outside. 

“What?” A voice bellows from the outside. 

“We got the right room!” She grins at Suga, and shuts the door. “Sorry ‘bout that. Shimizu-sama can be somewhat intense, but she’s not that bad once you get used to her. Why are you even here? Don’t you have a prince to rescue?” 

“Had.” Suga corrects, pushing off the desk. “He’s in a cave. You don’t by any chance-,” 

“Know Shirabu?” Saeko looks at him in disgust. “That little maggot. He may be important, but he’s got some pretty shitty morals. You should stay away from him. Don’t know why you’d want to interact with that prick at all.” 

“I don’t much know either.” Suga says, and he can’t keep the bitter disappointment out of his voice. Shirabu is the key to everything, and Suga hates it, hates it, hates it. 

“Well,” Saeko says, voice bored. “Then don’t. Sawamura will be waiting for you when you get back, you know.” 

Suga looks at her, slightly shocked. “I never told you his name.” 

“Didn’t have to. I’m a bit like Shirabu myself.” She grins. “He can transport minds. That’s what makes him special. I can read ‘em. It’s not a particularly challenging skill, Sugawara-san.” 

“Not particularly challenging.” Suga echoes faintly. “Not particularly challenging. How does it work?” 

Saeko looks at him, clearly surprised. “It’s not reading,” She says finally. “That’s the preferred term. But that’s not really what it is. It’s more...opening. The mind is surrounded by walls, sometime thick mental ones. The only ones who are truly unreadable are mind-readers themselves, but it varies. You’d never be able to get past my mental defenses, much less Shirabu’s or Shimizu’s. It does require some basic knowledge of magic, but really, you just need perception.” 

“Can you teach me?” Suga blurts the words out, voice shaking slightly. 

Saeko looks at him for about two seconds before roaring with laughter. 

“You’re funny, human,” She gasps, finally, nearly bent over double. “You’d need to learn magic first. Why do you even want to read minds? It won’t help you against Shirabu.” 

“It might,” Suga murmurs. “If I could make him realize…” _That I’m worth noticing. That I’m worth his time. That he should help me._

That he should let me get to Daichi.

“You wouldn’t be able to make him realize anything.” Saeko snorts. “He’s stubborn, that idiot. Hell, I’d have a better chance than you would.” 

“That’s exactly why you have to help me!” Suga can feel his voice rising, along with his temper. Saeko may think that she’s doing him a favor, but he needs to be able to do something. He can’t sit in a palace writing letters. He’ll go insane. 

“Have to,” Saeko says, and her eyes narrow. “Have to is a strong wording, Sugawara. I don’t have to do anything. You’re interesting, but I’ll save my ass and my brother’s long before I’ll save yours.” 

“ _I haven’t been able to do anything!_ ” Suga yells. He knows he sounds crazy, he knows, but he has to say something. “ _Every step of progress that I’ve fought for has been because of somebody else! I need Shimizu! I need Shirabu! I need them to do something as simple as leave the palace! I need to be able to rely on myself, and right now, I can’t do that! I’m not strong enough!_ ” 

There’s silence for a while, while Saeko blinks at him, and Suga collapses back onto the bed. He doesn’t feel any better. Still angry, still lonely, still wanting to be able to fucking _do something_. 

“I can’t teach you,” Saeko says, finally. 

“Why the fuck-,” 

“ _Listen for a minute._ ” She snaps. “ _I_ can’t help you. Someone else might be able to. Come by the kitchens tomorrow morning. Someone there can help you learn something. You don’t even know magic, Sugawara. I can’t help you learn to read minds if you don’t even know magic.” 

Suga takes a deep breath, and lets it out. 

“Do you think-,” 

“You of all people know what bullshit making promises is.” Saeko’s voice is short. “Kitchens. Tomorrow. I’ll tell them to expect you. Understand, Sugawara?” 

“Yes.” 

“Great. Now what are we talking about? Because I guarantee that it’s going to be really fucking boring if you sit on the bed and I sit against the wall for three more hours until the Queen wants you.”

Suga can feel a smile curling up the corners of his lips. “That boring, huh?” 

“I mean, I assume you don’t want to endure three hours of awkward silence.” Saeko grins at him. “What do humans play anyways?” 

“Lots of things.” Suga says, thinking back to his childhood and decidedly not thinking about how much of it was spent with Yui. “All sorts of common games, but I never played any of those. I was...sheltered, you could say. Being a prince was one thing, but being a prince who never was allowed to consort with other humans my age, save the servants, was a different issue altogether.” 

“You listened to them?” Saeko seems genuinely interested by this, and Suga lets himself think back. Back to when it was just a little easier. 

“Of course. I wasn’t exactly the rebelling type when I knew that there was a chance I could put my entire family to sleep.” 

“But you would dive into Faerie and nearly start a war to save your true love, who you blatantly denied for the first few months that you knew him,” Saeko muses, and there’s a steely glint in her eyes. “Family troubles, Sugawara?” 

“You wouldn’t-,” 

“Understand? That’s probably true. My parents were killed when I was young, and Ryuu and I have stuck to our own since then. We aren’t anybody’s problem except our own, and that’s fine by us. Well, it’s fine by me. He goes around making friends, and he just loves to hang around the guards. I keep telling him that one day it’s going to get us into trouble, but the ass won’t listen.” 

“I wish I had a sibling sometimes.” Suga confesses, a little wistful, a little sad. “It would be nice to have someone to confide in.” 

Saeko snorts. “Confide in? More like stick with. Ryuu’s a pain in the ass, but we stick together. From what it sounds like, your entire family is horrible. Stay down here with us. You’ll like it a lot better, I guarantee.” 

Suga smiles a little, and sits back against the wall, and lets himself believe for a moment that it’s true.

***

 

Shimizu comes to him when the sky is turning from gold to black, darkening and changing, and she looks worried. 

“I’ll take you down there.” She says, and her voice is hushed. “Get up.” 

Suga looks at her for a moment before realizing what she means and standing up for a moment to get his bearings. “Alright. How long do I have?” 

“I can guarantee you five minutes to talk to him. Five minutes, Sugawara. Do you know what time bubbles do?” 

“No.” 

“Right. Well, time runs on in the bubble, so he’ll be speaking and breathing and conscious and all that, but if you step outside of the bubble, he freezes. Essentially, wherever you are is where time is moving. Makes sense, yes?” 

“Yes.” Suga says. He doesn’t know why she’s had a change of heart. He doesn’t know why she’s just now offering him this, or how she plans to do this without Shirabu noticing. But he isn’t going to pass it up.

“Good. We’ll be passing through the marketplace again, because that’s where we’ll blend in. Don’t make eye contact this time.” She throws him a heavy cloak that’s made of woolen black material that itches the places where it touches bare skin. 

“Why are you doing this?” Suga asks abruptly, and Shimizu smiles a little, weakly. 

“I remember Hitoka,” She says quietly. “I remember who she was and what she did. I remember the way she laughed and how she loved. And perhaps if you manage to escape this place, you’ll take me to her again.” There’s a sort of challenge in her eyes. “I’ve been told again and again that humans are cruel, Sugawara. Prove me wrong.” 

_Prove me wrong._

The words echo in his mind as he pulls the cloak over his shoulders. The blackness of the day is starting to bleed through the curtains, and Shimizu looks over her shoulder. 

“We have to go.” She says. “He’ll notice before too long.” 

“I thought he was gone.” Suga says, puzzled. 

Shimizu looks at him like he’s an idiot. “Now he’s gone. I have no idea when that will change. It isn’t like he gives me a timetable.” 

Suga nods, and Shimizu pulls the window up. It’s a straight drop down, and he looks over her shoulder a little nervously. There are vines climbing up the wall, but there’s nothing but air all the way down. 

Suga doesn’t really know how to feel about this, but Shimizu is climbing over the edge and offering him her hand, so he takes it. 

A second later, he’s free-falling over the side of a tower, and Shimizu is hurtling along beside him, leaving his stomach at the windowsill. 

They fall like that until Shimizu raises a hand, and their descent slows considerably, until Suga lands lightly on the grass, thoroughly disoriented and overwhelmed. 

“Did we have to go down like that?” He gasps, blinking several times and trying to collect his thoughts. 

“Yes.” Shimizu says simply. “Yes, we did. He would have detected us otherwise.” 

“Shirabu?” Suga knows he sounds disgusted, but he doesn’t care. There isn’t much point in her being Queen if one of her advisors has more power over Faerie. Shimizu’s expression tightens, and she turns to fix him with a glare. 

“No,” She says, voice clipped and tight. “Death. Do you want to be killed, Sugawara?” 

“Not particularly.” 

“Then keep quiet, why don’t you.” She turns around again and leads him forward, grip on his wrist tight and unforgiving. Suga follows her instructions and keeps his head down, watching the grass turn brown and dead under his feet. 

The light of the night is fading, and the blackness of day is starting to seep in. Suga can’t really see where his feet are taking him, actually. 

“You don’t need to know where we’re going.” Shimizu whispers. “All you need to know is that eye contact is lethal, and if you touch _anybody,_ you’re as good as dead. Got it?” 

Suga nods silently. 

“Good.” They walk and walk and walk, and then finally the clink of stones greets them. 

He can’t see anything, but the noise is nearly enough to knock him back. The first time they went to the marketplace, they were running, so he didn’t quite realize the full magnitude of the noise, but now it’s hitting him like a brick to the face. The clash of stones and the thrum of magic and the scream of voices. 

Shimizu does not say a word. Suga keeps his eyes trained on the ground. 

“Got yourself a pet?” A voice purrs from his left, and Shimizu turns briefly. “I must say, he’s pretty, if nothing else. Looks a bit like the boy from the palace.” The faerie’s voice becomes a snarl, and Shimizu’s grip on his wrist tightens. 

“Humans all look similar.” She says shortly. “It’s nothing new.” 

“I suppose that’s true.” The faerie’s voice turns cruel and vicious, and it lunges forward. 

There’s the sound of metal against metal and a strangled noise. Suga does not look up, but it takes a good portion of his willpower to do so. 

“Don’t move another inch.” Shimizu’s quiet voice says, deadly. “Or I will kill you.” 

The faerie retreats after a moment, and they continue on their way. Suga does not look at Shimizu-he doesn’t know what she’s done and he isn’t sure that he wants to know. 

“Would you have killed it?” He asks under his breath as they walk, and Shimizu scoffs a little. 

“Don’t ask questions to which you already know the answer.” She says, and they walk again in silence. 

Suga doesn’t know if that’s affirmative or not, but it’s something that he’s not willing to explore further with her. It’s not really a chance that he’s willing to take with her. 

They walk and walk and walk, and suddenly Shimizu stops in front of him. 

“Are we there?” Suga asks. 

“Yes.” Shimizu says. “I will not ask you to jump this time, Koushi.” The sudden use of his given name makes him look at her, startled, and she looks back, eyes sad. There’s a smear of something gold on her cheek, and she wipes it away. 

“Why not?” 

There’s only a moment when he looks at her before she moves, pushing him hard over the edge. It’s sudden and startling, and all Suga can do is watch as she becomes smaller and smaller over his head. 

His stomach is in his throat as he falls, and his wordless scream is lost to the wind, but he’s spared the humiliation, because she catches him at the bottom, bridal style. Her head is bowed, and Suga looks at her, utterly bewildered, and with no small amount of indignation. 

“What the hell was that for?” 

“It’s quicker.” Shimizu says quietly. “We’re more likely to avoid detection.” It’s the second time she’s said this, and this time he frowns at her. “Death is especially prevalent down around these parts, Sugawara.” 

It’s only then that he realizes that the gold liquid is coming from her eyes, and he recognizes it for what it is-teardrops. She rubs them away as quickly as they come, but it is plain as day in front of him-the Queen of Faerie is crying. 

“Did you know him?” He says quietly, and Shimizu lets out a strangled noise. 

“It was not long.” She replies, and the words come all in a rush. “I’ll...I’ll tell you about it sometime. I told Hitoka. It’s only fair...is it not?” She smiles at him, and there’s something sadly beautiful about the image. 

“I have time.” Suga says. Shimizu shakes her head silently. 

“Not today.” She scowls, and they begin their way down the corridors. “Here’s how this is going to work. I’m going to let you in-,” She growls in frustration and swats at something that Suga can’t see. “I’m going to let you in, and you’re going to talk to him.” 

“What’s wrong?” Suga asks her, and Shimizu turns on him, eyes streaming with tears. 

“You can’t-,” She breaks off and waves her hands. “The mines have a way of creating illusions for those who come down without guides. They’re how people go missing. They see their true loves or their best friends or something horrifying or dark or entrancing behind a veil and they follow it and Death-well, to be quite frank, he consumes them. They never see day again.” 

Suga can’t quite keep the look of surprise off of his face. “So that’s what’s happening to you now?” 

“Yes.” Shimizu says firmly, and she rams her elbow into the space next to him. “They’re creating illusions to cloud my mind. Death has spotted us, but he doesn’t realize that it’s the Queen of Faerie and the human Prince.” 

“So he’s creating these illusions already.” Suga murmurs, understanding dawning on him. “Does this mean that I’ll start to see things soon?” 

“Yes.” Shimizu replies, voice tight and clipped. “But not if you keep your eyes on the ground and your mind on Sawamura-who is currently in that cave, and will not get out if you get lured away. I’m fighting my own battle. Now you fight yours.” 

Suga nods, and he turns his eyes back to the ground. There’s nothing but dirt and the occasional gem embedded there, and he doesn’t say a word as they continue, until Shimizu stops short. 

“Something wrong?” He asks, and there’s silence. “Shimizu?” 

“Nothing’s wrong.” She replies, and they continue. There is nothing, nothing, nothing. 

And then there’s a single eye, staring at him from the ground. It’s big and brown, the exact color of Yui’s eyes. Suga recoils, and Shimizu tenses against his back. 

“Something wrong?” She asks, echoing his earlier sentiment, and he shakes his head wordlessly. 

“Nothing’s wrong.” He says. 

In this way, they continue. Occasionally, Shimizu will make a startled noise, and gold liquid will drip onto the ground next to his feet, or Suga will catch sight of what looks like a corpse, and he’ll bury his face in his hands and wish for it to end. 

Everything from his nightmares is here, but that’s not really unusual. He’s seen the nightmares so easily lately. They rise unbidden to his mind.

They continue. 

It feels like several years before they reach a place where Shimizu stops. She appears stoic, but the tear stains on her face say otherwise. Gesturing towards the cave entrance, she turns to face him. 

“Here we are.” She says simply, and Suga nods, because he can’t quite think of what else to say. 

“How long do I have?” He asks, instead, and Shimizu scrunches up her nose. 

“I can guarantee you a few minutes. Nothing excessive. We’re being watched, so please do try to keep that in mind.” She looks at him with something that he can’t quite read, and his face warms as he realizes what she’s implying. 

“I just want to talk to him!” Suga says, and Shimizu raises an eyebrow. “I don’t-I wasn’t-I-,” 

“Mm,” Shimizu says as he sputters beside her. “Don’t be too long. I won’t be able to bring him out with you. This is talking time for you, nothing more-understand?” 

“I understand.” Suga says, and his mind is racing. He’s going to talk to Daichi, he’s going to learn magic from Saeko’s friend, he’s going to do so much. He has so many plans. 

He reaches out to touch the filmy barrier that protects the cave entrance, but Shimizu stops his hand. She reaches out first, and tears it in half gently. It’s a bit like mucus, and it sticks to her hands when she rips a hole and gestures him through.

“Thank you,” He says quietly as he steps through, and she nods, looking over her shoulder wordlessly. 

The cave is quiet and the walls glitter with jewels and unmined gold. Daichi is sitting in the middle of it, and he looks up when Suga walks in. His eyes are wild and he looks on the verge of tears or hysteria. 

“Daichi?” Suga asks softly, and Daichi laughs. It’s a small noise, but it’s unhinged. 

“Why doesn’t the world move?” He asks, and the words are edged with terror. “Where am I? How did I-how are you here?” 

“We’re in Faerie.” Suga says, and he sits cross-legged next to Daichi and reaches out tentatively. “I promise I’ll explain everything, Daichi, just give me a moment, okay?” 

“How am I here?” Daichi repeats, and he laughs again. It’s startling and sudden and unlike Daichi-it’s full of fear and it cracks something in Suga’s heart. “How am I here, Suga? How did I-I didn’t-where’s Michimiya? Wasn’t she here before-weren’t there-other people?” 

“Faerie.” Suga repeats, and reaches across to grip Daichi’s hands within his own. “We’re in Faerie. Michimiya is...Michimiya is d-dead.” He chokes out the word, because he can’t break down too. “She died g-getting you down here for me.” He won’t cry. He’s cried himself out. 

“Why doesn’t the outside move?” Daichi asks, and he gestures around him. “I can see...I can see everything. There are villages and towns and they stay still. They don’t move and nobody ages and everybody is frozen and I can’t get to them and-,” 

“What?” Suga says to himself, because they sit inside a cave-that much is plain as day. Shimizu led him down here. 

Then something that she said echoes in his mind. 

_They see their true loves or their best friends or something horrifying or dark or entrancing behind a veil and they follow it._

“They’re all out there.” Daichi is muttering to himself, and his hands shake wildly. “I can’t get to them. I saw you.” He looks at Suga imploringly. “I saw you, and I wanted to get to you so badly, but you couldn’t move, and I couldn’t get to you, and-,” 

“Shhh,” Suga murmurs, and he scoots closer and wraps his arms around him. “Shh, it’s all right. I’m right here. They aren’t real. They’re illusions. I promise you.”  
Daichi is breathing hard when Suga first embraces him, but Suga rubs soothing circles across his back, and eventually the pattern of his breaths evens out a bit. “It’s not real.” He repeats, and Suga nods. 

“Not real.” Daichi says slowly. 

“Not real.” Suga repeats. “I promise you, Daichi. They’re not real.” 

“What are you doing here?” Daichi asks, finally, and Suga grimaces. 

“It’s a bit of a long story.” He says. “I didn’t want-I didn’t want to leave you alone. I wanted to see you again. I’m going to get you out, I promise. I promise.” Daichi looks at him, eyes steady.

“I believe you,” He says. “You’re you. And I love you.” And he smiles. It twists something painful in Suga’s heart to see it, but he smiles back. 

“I love you too.” He says, and Shimizu sticks her head into the entrance that she's created. 

“Sugawara!” She calls. “Only a minute left. Say your goodbyes.” 

“Who is that?” Daichi asks, and Suga smiles a little. He’s been around faeries for so long. It’s odd to be around someone who knows nothing about them. He understands now how Hitoka felt when he first arrived. 

“Shimizu Kiyoko.” He says. “She’s the Queen of Faerie. I have to leave you now, but I’ll be back. I promise.” 

“I know.” Daichi says. “I’ll wait for you.” 

Suga gives him another sad half-smile, and then he steps out of the film. Shimizu seals it behind him, and shakes the goop off of her fingers. 

“I hope that was worth it.” She mutters, glancing around. “Because we will not be doing this again for quite some time.” 

“It was worth it.” Suga assures her, and as they head back down the tunnels, and he steps around eyes buried in the ground and visions of his best friend which he sobs at, he wonders what Saeko has in store for him tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> come talk to me on twitter or tumblr! i'm poppyrainstorm on both. 
> 
> (happy very belated new year to everyone, by the by!)


	13. Carousel

Shouyou isn’t worried. At least, that’s what he keeps telling himself. 

He’s not worried that Suga-san hasn’t come back in weeks. He’s not worried that Hitoka isn’t her usual self, and she keeps turning to talk to someone who’s not there. He’s not worried that Oikawa is gone more often than not.

He’s not worried that the Queen is pacing and pale and she snaps at everybody who comes near her. 

He’s not worried, not worried, not worried. 

Tsukishima, the Helnian guard, is in the West Wing, alone with the spindle, seeing if they can trace Sawamura through blood magic. So far, there’s been no luck, and when Shouyou once asked if he could help, Tsukishima looked at him flatly and asked what possible help an inexperienced stable boy could be. 

That’s set Shouyou off of him somewhat permanently. 

Iwaizumi is always there, but says very little. Wherever he is, Oikawa isn’t, so that means that what little Shouyou would have seen of Oikawa is reduced to nothing.

Kageyama is the other guard, and he’s annoying and blustering and Shouyou kind of hates him too, but Kageyama is willing to help him, so it's not all bad. Shouyou decided right off the bat that he doesn't want to and can't just be a stable boy right now. Michimiya could have buried herself in work and frowned but made friends with the guards, and Oikawa is missing but probably doing his Princely duties as well and dammit, Shouyou feels absolutely useless. 

Speaking of Michimiya, she's still gone. 

The Queen doesn't notice. Hitoka is distracted. Shouyou is the only one, and that's only because Michimiya was the one who rubbed his head and gave him spoons to lick that were full of frosting, just like Suga-san. It's only because Suga-san and Michimiya were thick as thieves, and when Suga-san left, Michimiya crumpled for a while and then started to conspire with Sawamura. 

He still doesn’t know exactly what they did-he was never privy to those conversations, but he knows that they were mostly about Sugawara-san. 

“Shouyou?” A voice comes, and he snaps back to the present, jerking upwards as Hitoka squeaks. 

“Shouyou!” She says, and he turns to face her. “Were you listening?” 

“No, Hitoka-chan.” He says honestly, and she shakes her head a little bit. 

“That’s okay. Truth be told, I’m not really sure what I was saying, anyway. I just. I don’t know what to do, Shouyou. Is that so wrong?” 

“You were in Faerie for a long time.” Shouyou reasons. “So that’s really no reason for you to be worried. You should-,” 

“You don’t understand.” Hitoka says quietly, and she buries her face in her hands. “I miss it.” 

“You-what?” Shouyou isn’t sure if his eyes bug out or not, but it sure feels like it. How could anybody miss Faerie? It’s a mess, a complete mess. Here he’d been thinking that Hitoka was upset because of her time there. “What is there to miss?” 

“Kiyoko.” Hitoka says wistfully. “And the sunrises there were beautiful. The guards were kind, once you got to know them, and the markets were so fascinating. I could have wandered there for hours. But mostly Kiyoko.” She sighs. “It’s okay, I suppose. I don’t mind.” 

“I can’t believe it.” Shouyou says, shaking his head a little bit. “How could you miss anybody from there?” 

“Shouyou.” Hitoka says, voice shaking a little bit. “You were asleep for one hundred years. You were not down there. You do not know what it’s like. So please, just-just stop it.” 

He shuts his mouth quickly. Because she’s right. 

What does he know? 

“Sugawara-san went down there.” He says quietly. “Do you think he’ll miss it when he comes back up?” 

“Shouyou.” She says, and her voice is remarkably steady. “We don’t know if he’s coming back up at all. That’s why the Queen is so upset. That’s why Oikawa-san is gone so often. That’s why the Helnian guards are so preoccupied with the spindle. They’re trying to get him back.” 

“How can you possibly know that?” 

“They asked for my help.” She lifts her chin. “And I did it. Because I am a human. And nothing is going to change that.” 

It’s a strange conversation. She’s only one of the people around the castle who’s truly acting strange, out of the ordinary. The others are worried, but that still fits within themselves. 

The second is Oikawa, who is never around anyway, but it wouldn’t really matter if he was because Oikawa and Shouyou haven’t ever really talked extensively. Their connection was through Sugawara, and now Suga is gone. 

And again and again and again, this is the loop that Shouyou’s mind follows: Suga is gone and Sawamura-san followed him and Michimiya is nowhere to be found. But nobody notices except for Shouyou, because only Shouyou and Sugawara and Sawamura-san paid attention to Michimiya. And maybe Oikawa would notice, but he’s gone too. Hitoka is here but not really-her mind's a million miles away. There are unfamiliar guards here. And Suga is gone. 

Again and again and again, like a child’s carousel that he can’t get off of. 

Shouyou is a stable boy. He has no grand duties, nor any plans for his future that go beyond restoring his life to some sort of semblance of normal. He is not the person that royalty approaches for help. 

A man approaches him in the evening, when the sun is setting low and Shouyou is brushing out the horses. His eyes are flinty and cold and his expression is flat. Shouyou doesn’t quite know what to think of him. 

The horses swish their tails, and one whinnies nervously. 

“May I help you?” Shouyou asks finally, when it becomes clear that the man is not going to ask him for anything first. 

“I don’t know.” The man replies. “Do you know the King and Queen of this kingdom?” 

“Not personally.” Shouyou says, “Why do you want to see them?” 

“I have a message for the royal family.” The man says, “It is regarding their son.” 

Shouyou chokes on nothing at all. 

“Suga-san?” He asks, hardly daring to believe what is happening in front of him, “You know something about where he is? How he is? Do you know if-?,” 

“I will tell their Majesties in person, or I will not speak at all.” And then he is silent, and he does not speak again no matter how much Shouyou pleads and begs and threatens and cries. 

“I can get them.” He says finally, “May I have a name to give them?” 

“You would not be able to pronounce it.” The man says, face impassive. “But once upon a time, I had a human name.” 

A human name? 

“Wakatoshi.” The man in front of him says. “You may tell the King and Queen that Ushijima Wakatoshi comes with a message from the Queen of Faerie regarding their son.” 

And everything clicks into place far too quickly. 

***

Shouyou runs down the halls, slightly out of breath and slightly terrified, until he sees somebody that he knows. 

“Hitoka, Hitoka please, you have to get the Queen, you’re her handmaiden aren’t you? You have to fetch her immediately, it’s about Sugawara-san, it’s an emergency-,” 

“Shouyou?” She catches his arm and he slows for a moment before tugging her along with him. “Shouyou, what’s going on?” 

“There,” He says, panting, “Is a faerie. Outside. In the stables. He says he has a message from the Queen of Faerie. I need to find the Queen. Now. Where is she?” 

Hitoka does not answer for a long moment. Her face is very pale. 

“She’s up in her chambers.” She says, finally, “They were to hold a council tonight about what to do-but you can’t interrupt her-Shouyou, _wait!_ ” 

But Shouyou is already off again, legs burning and lungs bursting and eyes streaming with tears that he’s trying to conceal. He passes maids and cooks and even Kageyama and Tsukishima at one point, who yell after him, but he doesn’t stop for a moment. 

The Queen’s chambers are locked tight, and the guards outside block his way easily. 

“There’s a faerie outside.” He gasps out, “Please, you have to-it’s about Suga-san, you have to get Her Majesty, _please._ ” 

“A faerie.” One guard repeats dubiously. “A faerie. Where, exactly?” 

“The stables.” Shouyou says. “That’s where I met him. He says he has a message. Please.” He adds, as though that will sway them. 

“You’re the stable boy, aren’t you?” The guard says, and his eyes are full of doubt. “How do we know that you aren’t-,” 

“I’m not lying!” Shouyou yells, all his anger and worry and frustration coming out in one burst. “It’s about Koushi-sama, and I need to speak to Her Majesty immediately!” 

The doors swing open, and Sugawara Ayaka stands there, eyes burning. She wears a scowl and a dressing gown. 

“My son,” She says, voice dangerously low, “Is currently missing. If you know something different, Hinata Shouyou, I would hear it here and now.” 

“Your Majesty.” Shouyou stands bolt upright. “I don’t. But there’s a faerie outside, near the stables-he says his name is Ushijima Wakatoshi-and he says he knows something about Suga-san.” 

The Queen’s eyes are dark, and Shouyou gulps before she nods, a small gesture that contains more than it says. If Michimiya were with him, she could tell him what was going on. 

But Michimiya is missing as well, and nobody has seen her for several weeks. 

“Take me to him.” She says softly, and so he does. 

They make an odd pair, the Queen and the stable boy walking down the hall purposefully. Odd looks and jaws dropping swarm them like bees, and Shouyou does not care for it, because there’s news about Sugawara, and that’s more valuable than anything he could give. 

Next to him, the Queen is pale and her eyes are hard and determined. 

Onward they walk. 

***

Ushijima is leaning against a stable wall casually. His arms are crossed, and Hitoka is standing next to him, wringing her hands and looking like she wants to scream. She probably has, though Shouyou has never seen her look quite that way. 

As soon as she sees him, her expression darkens and she runs towards him, picking up her long skirt so that she doesn’t trip over horseshoes as she goes. 

“Shouyou.” She says, through gritted teeth. “Why the hell is Wakatoshi here?” 

It only takes a moment for him to realize that she’s called him by his given name. “You _know him?_ ” 

“Of course I know him!” Hitoka hisses, “He’s one of the guards that attends Kiyoko-san! How could I not know him, Shouyou?!” 

“You-I thought you just knew the Queen!” Shouyou sputters, and the Queen looks over his shoulder, suddenly interested, eyes narrowed. “I thought you just-,” 

“Shimizu had other Fey with her, of course she did!” Hitoka says, and she’s wringing her hands furiously at this point. “She’s smart! She know that Kenjirou-san would try something someday, and I bet he has, just you watch! I always told her to watch her back…” And she dissolves into a small puddle onto the ground. 

“Wakatoshi, was it?” When Sugawara Ayaka advances on Ushijima, it is not a pleasant sight at all. Her eyes are narrowed, every aspect of her body taut with tension, and there’s something behind the press of her lips together in a thin white line that reminds Shouyou rather unpleasantly of Sugawara before he left. 

“Ushijima.” Ushijima says instead, and extends his hand. “I take it you are the Queen of this realm.” 

“That’s correct.” The Queen draws herself up. “I was under the impression that you had news of my son.” 

“That’s correct.” Ushijima parrots her. “I come bearing a message for you. Without the stable boy and the handmaid present.” 

“Wakatoshi.” Hitoka whispers, but he refuses to look at her. 

“Her Majesty is safe, Yachi-san. Please attend to other matters. I must speak with your ruler.” 

“C’mon, Hitoka.” Shouyou takes her by both hands and hoists her upright. “Let’s go, okay? We can go...well, we can go somewhere else.” 

“Okay.” Hitoka seems to be in some sort of state of shock. “Shouyou, where are we going?” 

“We’re going away from here.” Shouyou says as calmly as he can, and the Queen nods at him. “Thank you for your time, my Queen.” 

He and Hitoka stumble away, Hitoka a little more shaken. They make it about thirty steps before they run into Oikawa. 

“What’s going on?” He asks, and Hitoka’s eyes widen at the sight of him. “The guards told me that Her Majesty had an audience with a faerie.” 

“That’s correct.” Shouyou says. “Why do you ask?” 

“I’d like to meet-,” 

“No!” Hitoka squeaks, and Oikawa looks at her oddly. “No, Your Highness, that would be a very bad idea. Please, let’s all go-,” 

“What?” Shouyou looks at her. “Why is an audience with Ushijima a bad idea? He’s royalty. It would probably be alright. Suga-” 

“No, it wouldn’t.” Oikawa says, and he looks around nervously before leading them both away in the direction that he came from. “He’s the wrong one to ask about this particular matter.” 

“What were you going to ask?” Shouyou asks, curious. 

“Nothing of consequence.” Oikawa says stiffly, and they continue on their way. “Just some personal matters.” 

“Iwaizumi-san?” Hitoka murmurs, as though she didn’t even mean to say it out loud, and Oikawa shoots a glare at her. It takes Shouyou a moment longer to put this one together-the name sounds familiar, but he hasn’t heard it in several years. He doesn’t quite remember an Iwaizumi, besides the guard. At least, not one that Oikawa would be interested in. 

“Iwaizumi Hajime?” He blurts out suddenly, and Oikawa gives him a quick nod. 

It all makes sense, then, and Shouyou turns very slowly to stare at Oikawa. 

He remembers Iwaizumi playing with them when they were younger, remembers Suga complaining about how it was like Tooru and Hajime had telepathy, like they’d been born with linked minds and that’s how they always beat everybody else. He remembers talking with Michimiya and Iwaizumi whenever Suga and Oikawa were at their important state meetings, and joking about what it would be like if they didn’t attend. 

But Iwaizumi had been outside when the curse had hit. He’d thought that it was simple coincidence that the guard shared the same name. None of the servants had heard about it, in any case.

“How is he still alive?” He asks, and Oikawa’s scowl deepens. 

“Fey magic.” He says shortly, and doesn’t offer any further details about the situation than that. Shouyou wonders, but doesn’t ask any more either, since he’s mildly terrified of Oikawa, especially when he’s like this, and it’s been that way for years. 

They walk, the strange procession of Hitoka, a maid, Shouyou, the stable boy, and Oikawa, a prince. It’s not at all strange when Suga is there, Shouyou thinks, and then immediately stamps on the thought because he doesn’t need all the emotion on his face right now. It would surely make him look sloppy, not composed like the other two, and he can’t have that. 

They walk. Oikawa flashes smiles at the passing girls, who blush and look away, and Shouyou wonders how dense they can be if they can’t see that Oikawa has always been head-over-heels for his best friend. Hell, Shouyou isn’t the most observant when it comes to Oikawa, but even he can see that. 

His best friend, who is still alive. It takes Shouyou a few moments to wrap his head around that. Iwaizumi Hajime lives.

Hitoka’s hands are shaking, and it’s a fact that Shouyou picks up on starkly when she clutches the sleeve of his loose shirt. They’re trembling, and she seems about to burst into tears. 

“Oikawa,” Shouyou whispers, and Oikawa looks at him. 

“What?” 

“Hitoka isn’t feeling well. Could we go to somewhere more private, please?” It’s not a lie-Hitoka looks like she might throw up at any moment. 

“We’ll go to my chambers.” Oikawa says quietly, and Shouyou nods. The castle is cold and the staircases are dark, but they make their way back to the South Tower, where Oikawa opens the door softly and lets them both in before lighting several candles that are scattered throughout the room. Shouyou inhales deeply-he’s always loved the smell of the South Tower, before Oikawa even came to live with them, and that’s never changed. 

“Hitoka,” Shouyou says, as she sinks down in one of the chairs. “What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing’s-nothing’s wrong.” Hitoka says, brown eyes wide and fearful. “Ushijima told me that Shimizu is-she’s-,” 

“Shimizu?” Oikawa interrupts, brow furrowed. “Who is Shimizu?” 

“The Queen of Faerie.” Hitoka says, and it seems to calm her down a bit. “She was kind to me when I stayed with her. She-,” Here, she stops entirely, playing with her hands for a moment. 

“Keep going.” Shouyou urges, because something is clearly eating her. 

“Ushijima is one of her guards.” Hitoka explains. “She has three. Ushijima-san, who’s currently outside. He’s a messenger. He brings Shimizu’s words and leads her army. Shimizu always said that he was the strongest, physically.” 

“Leads her army.” Oikawa states flatly. “So he could have come with news of Suga, or he could have come to declare war.” 

“That’s correct.” Hitoka says, and Oikawa groans, running a hand through his hair so that it sticks up. 

“Who are the other two?” 

“Tendou-san is one.” Hitoka looks thoughtful. “He was never around much. He can forsee parts of the future, and he keeps a watch on the mines in his spare time, since Ushijima is too busy with other affairs and Shirabu can’t be trusted to watch them reliably.” 

“Slow down a bit.” Shouyou says. “So this Tendou person-he can see what’s going to happen in the future?” 

“To an extent.” Hitoka says, and she plays with a strand of her hair as she says it. “He can’t see very many specifics. Atmospheres, perhaps. He-,” She looks uncertain. “I don’t think he could predict anything here.” 

“What about the last one?” Oikawa asks. 

“Shirabu-san.” Hitoka replies, “I don’t know a lot about him. He’s younger than Ushijima and Tendou by a few centuries, and he’s always around for some reason or another. I don’t know why he couldn’t watch the mines instead of Tendou, because Kiyoko couldn’t tell me. But it’s got to be a damn good reason, because any faerie with half a brain can do that. He can also read minds.” She adds as an afterthought. “I assume he’s how Sugawara-san got through to us from Faerie.” 

“A messenger, a fortune-teller, and a mind-reader.” Shouyou says, eyes wide. “And that’s just three of them?” 

“Yes.” Hitoka says. “But they wouldn’t dare to do anything until Shimizu commanded it. I know it. She’s quite capable of handling the Fey on her own. If Ushijima is here, it’s because she told...him….,” Her face pales again. “The Queen.” 

“Hitoka.” Oikawa says, and she looks up at him. “I don’t know what you’re thinking right now, but you need to breathe, and you need to tell us.” His voice is open and honest, and it’s exactly the wrong time for the door to come bursting open and Iwaizumi and Kageyama to come in dressed in full armor. 

There’s a beat of silence where Iwaizumi stares at Hitoka and Oikawa, and Kageyama and Shouyou lock eyes and there’s some sort of question in Kageyama’s that Shouyou knows that he can’t answer. Time seems to move in slow motion, and Shouyou can see twenty different kinds of panic flash across Hitoka’s face all in quick succession.

Then it all goes to hell. 

Oikawa drops his hands off of Hitoka’s shoulders, Hitoka gives a small squeak and faints straight onto the floor, Shouyou moves to catch her, and they both topple to the floor, one more unconscious than the other while Oikawa scrambles to reach the guards. 

And then everybody starts to speak at once.

“Hajime, no, it’s not-,” 

“Hinata, you dumbass, what are you _doing?_ ” 

“Hitoka? _Hitoka?_ ” 

And then Iwaizumi raises both hands and roars “Everybody _shut up!_ ” Which startles them all into silence. 

Surprisingly, it’s Kageyama who breaks the silence. “We should get her to a physician.” He says, pointing at Hitoka. “Is she-,” 

“I don’t know!” Shouyou says, and panic seeps into his tone, eating its way up his throat and swallowing half of his words. “I don’t-I’m not a physician, I can’t-,” 

“Well, where is the physician in this damned castle, anyway? We heard that the Fey sent a soldier to attack, and-,” 

“To attack?” Oikawa interrupts, eyes huge. “You can’t honestly think that was what was happening.” 

Shouyou pointedly does not say that that’s what _they_ thought could have been happening not ten minutes ago.

“I know what I heard!” Iwaizumi snaps. “We heard from the Queen’s guards that there was a faerie outside conversing unattended with your Queen, and we were given orders to find you and protect you. Oikawa-san, you’re royalty. Hinata and Yachi are friends of the missing Prince.” 

“Yachi says that she knows Ushijima.” Oikawa says. “She says that he’s a messenger.” Shouyou starts a little, looks at Oikawa, but his eyes never change. 

“Yachi is currently passed out on the floor.” Iwaizumi shoots back.

“Whose fault is that?” Shouyou asks angrily. “You both startled her! You-,” He shakes his head. “I need to get her to a physician.” 

Hitoka is pretty light, but unconscious she’s a dead weight. Shouyou struggles for a moment before maneuvering her into a position where she’s draped over his back, and he sways for a moment before regaining his balance. Then her weight disappears, and Shouyou spins around to find Kageyama holding her bridal style. 

“I can assist you.” He says, and he shoots a look across the room to where Oikawa and Iwaizumi are glaring daggers at each other. “If you want.” 

“Alright.” Hinata says, but a little bit warily, because Hitoka and Kageyama barely know each other to begin with. They leave the room just as Oikawa starts speaking quickly and furiously again. 

“The Queen volunteered herself to go out and see if anybody has news about Koushi. She’s perfectly safe. You didn’t need to-,” 

“Right,” Iwaizumi says, voice scathing, “And what if you had been there too? What if you had been attacked?” 

“You don’t need to be concerned!” Oikawa shouts, just as Kageyama closes the door. “It’s not anything-,” 

Kageyama and Shouyou make their escape as quickly as possible, the sounds of Oikawa and Iwaizumi’s argument dying in their ears as they climb down staircases. Hitoka still lies unconscious in Kageyama’s arms, and Shouyou decidedly avoids looking at her, because he knows if he does, he’ll almost certainly start crying and he doesn’t want to cry in front of Kageyama. 

“Does this happen often?” Kageyama asks, and Shouyou’s shoulders sag. 

“She’s always been anxious.” He confesses, “But ever since she came back, it’s been worse. She keeps looking for people that aren’t there, insisting that she’s still human. She’s never fainted before-at least not while I’m around.” 

“I see.” Kageyama says, face dark and unreadable. “You don’t think that they could have done something to her during her time in Faerie?” 

Shouyou’s heart stutters to a stop. 

“What?” He says. 

“Faeries are known for their magic.” Kageyama says with a shrug. “It’s possible that their Queen bewitched Yachi somehow. We’ve seen cases in Helnia, you know.” 

“When Hitoka’s always described Faerie,” Shouyou says, “She’s said it was a place of wonder. Never that there was any...any bewitching.” 

“She wouldn’t say it, dumbass!” Kageyama says through gritted teeth. “Most likely, Yachi wouldn’t even be aware of it.” 

“That can’t have happened, though.” Shouyou says, shaking his head. “She came from Faerie weeks ago. It was-it was-she was tested! Tsukishima and-,” 

“Sometimes people miss these things.” Kageyama says. “I’m not saying it’s definitely what happened. But it’s a possibility, one that any idiot with half a brain wouldn’t rule out. Do consider taking her to see an exorcist instead, will you?” 

“Do you know what you’re saying?” Shouyou asks, and his voice is shaky. “She’s my best friend. She can’t be….possessed, or-,” 

“Bewitched.” Kageyama corrects. “And that’s not the-,” 

“Be quiet.” Shouyou snaps. “Just be quiet, Kageyama-san. You don’t know anything about this, so please don’t pretend to.” 

But as they walk, he worries. He’s told Kageyama off for not knowing anything, but what more does Shouyou really know? He’s taking Tsukishima’s word for the fact that Hitoka is good and free of magic. He doesn’t know Tsukishima all that well. 

But she speaks of Faerie with such reverence. She speaks of her time there as though they had been kind. Sincerity can’t be faked like that. There isn’t a way that she could be bewitched.

Silently, he adds a new item to the carousel. Suga-san is gone, as is Michimiya. Oikawa isn’t around and when he is, he’s upset. Iwaizumi Hajime is still alive by some Faerie magic. The Queen is pale and tense all the time. A military commander from Faerie came to visit them today. And Hitoka isn’t herself, and is possibly bewitched. 

At least Natsu is alright, he thinks, although it seems a bit of a low bar to set, that one person in his life is safe and unworried. His little sister’s biggest worry is when she’ll get to pet the horses or see the Queen. It’s not whether the Fey will invade with some of Hitoka’s acquaintances leading the charge.

The castle is cold, and Hitoka is cold as he takes her hand. Kageyama’s mouth is set in a hard line, and the click of his boots against stone is the only sound. 

The physician is quick and efficient, which is a blessing. Physicians have always been easy going, willing to take the burdens that they cannot, and Shouyou has never been gladder for it than now. She works steadily on Hitoka, soaking cool rags and pressing them against her forehead gently before crushing herbs and medicine and finally kicking them both out of the room entirely with a firm frown. 

“How would we know?” Shouyou asks finally, and Kageyama turns to look at him in surprise. “If she...if she really was bewitched, how would we know?” 

There's a long pause. 

“You'd have to have her checked,” Kageyama says, “Probably by an expert. Tsukishima is quite good at guaranteeing these things. It's his specialty, as a matter of fact. He used to perform examinations in Helnia quite often.” 

“But he looked her over.” Shouyou says faintly. 

“He might have missed something.” Kageyama seems so at ease, as though he isn’t shaking the very idea of Shouyou’s world as he speaks. “Tsukishima….is skilled, I admit, but even he makes mistakes.” He sounds like the words are slightly painful. Shouyou can understand the feeling.

Tsukishima is not his favorite person. 

“What would happen if she…,” Shouyou can’t bring himself to actually say it. Kageyama doesn’t say anything as they walk away, slowly, carefully. 

“She’d probably be imprisoned.” He says finally. “The royal family here is not accommodating towards Fey-related persons. They wouldn’t like to have a rogue agent of the Fey in their custody. My guess is that they’d...consider executing her.” He says the last part uncertainly, like he isn’t sure what he’s just said. 

Shouyou’s heart almost stops. 

“I need to visit Tsukishima,” He says, and his voice trembles. “And I need to do it now. Where is he?” 

Kageyama points him in the direction of their West Wing, and Shouyou goes, each step weighing on him like concrete, hard and heavy and fast. All he can think of is Hitoka, and all he can imagine is the horror of seeing her screaming as she is led towards the grave. 

***

There is a part that Shimizu Kiyoko left out of her story. 

It tells of a resurrection, and the reason that it was left out was because the Queen of Faerie was unwilling to disclose the information to a young Prince who was foolhardy and in love. It tells of an accident, of an event that was never meant to be. 

It goes something like this. 

When the woman was dead, and when Death was razing the land, the visitor who had taken the woman’s life came back for her. 

He did not do it for noble reasons. It was not to soothe Death’s pain, nor to help the humans, who were dying by the thousands. It was personal gain, and personal gain alone-he wanted something to hold over the Lord of Death’s head. 

The visitor wanted a way to cheat Death, when the time came. He was wise enough to know that the time must come for everybody.

The house was empty and quiet when he entered it, and her body was well into the ground, but the visitor did not search for the body. He searched for her memories. 

He took them out of the house, some wrapped in careful cloth, some in glass and some wrapped in barbed wire, and placed them all into a vessel, which he buried deep into the ground. Nobody would ever find the vessel, not as long as he was alive. Nobody would find the memories. 

It was then that he went to her grave. 

The spell to resurrect a human soul is not difficult. It requires a sacrifice, but the visitor had taken her memories, had taken her life, and had sent her love far away. He believed that he did not need a sacrifice. 

The spell was successful. The woman was reborn. The vessel remained buried in the ground. Nobody knew what he had done. 

He brought himself a curse, however, and the Queen of Faerie was the one to deliver it. 

It was not much of a curse, some would say. Simply a dedication. 

The visitor was to become Death’s new love. 

She told him of what he had done, and of what he would not be allowed to do. She took the vessel filled with the woman’s memories from its place underground, and she sent him back to Faerie, to wait. She took the woman, reborn as a child, and froze time in a bubble so that she would not be allowed to resurface before the Queen wanted her in the world. In years’ time, she said, the visitor would be called upon. The woman, his sacrifice to help cheat Death, would die, and he would be called to Death’s side. 

Time, she told him gravely, was not on his side. 

The visitor stood next to the grave for a long time once she was gone, lips twisted into a crooked smile. Blink, and he was gone-returning to Faerie to wait. 

Blink, and the reborn woman was on her way to the kingdom of Miliwyn, with the Fey Queen’s guidance, as a baby under the name of Michimiya Yui. 

Blink, and everything is as it should be. 

For now, at least. 

***

~~There is a third part of the story that Shimizu Kiyoko did not tell, because she did not know it. It goes like this.~~

~~The visitor fell in love with Death, after all.~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oof this took a long time to get out to compensate, it's a longer chapter this time! school was kicking my ass for a while, but the worst of it is done and gone, and updates should be more frequent now. definitely not four months in between updates again  
> comments and kudos make my day!  
> finally, just in case anyone has forgotten, because it's been a while, the story that's referenced at the end of this chapter appears in chapter 9. i hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	14. Skyfall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> today is skies of black and gold's birthday!! have a chapter to celebrate!

Saeko’s acquaintance is late, and Suga is getting nervous.

There’s a woman there who reminds him of Hitoka-she’s nervous and bright, and she waves to him a few times before going back to grinding spices into a bowl. It also reminds him a bit of Yui, except Yui would come over and cuff him over the head for neglecting his princely duties. 

Ushijima is also there, for some unfathomable reason. He’s speaking to somebody over in the corner in low tones. Suga is not surprised to see Ushijima-he seems to be everywhere at once at times. He is, however, surprised to see Ushijima in the same area as he is at the same time. 

He wishes, vainly, that he’d asked Saeko to give his guide an identifier. That would have been a hell of a lot more helpful. 

Minutes pass, then hours. Extravagant dishes pass in and out, decorated with Fey fruit and sauces that gleam under the lowlights. The darkness of dawn is starting to creep through the windows, and Suga decides that there’s really no point in waiting any longer. 

There’s a strange sense of defeat that lies with him as he does, as though Saeko has let him down in some way. He can feel Ushijima’s eyes on his back as he leaves, but he can’t bring himself to pay any mind to it. 

There are entirely too many staircases leading up to his room, but when he reaches it he stops short, because Shimizu is waiting for him at the door. 

“Sugawara,” She says, “We need to talk.” 

Suga stiffens instantly. 

“Shirabu has returned.” She says. “He got back last night, and he went to speak to Death about your...situation.” 

“My situation,” Suga echoes. “You mean the one where Daichi is trapped in a cave. You keep saying it like it’s all about me. You know, Your Majesty, even beyond me, he is the Prince of Helnia. They’re going to want him back. They’re not going to just leave him there.” 

“We can fend off humans.” Shimizu says coldly. “There is no need to worry about that, Sugawara.” 

“I know you can,” Suga says, “But do you want to? Do you want to go to war? Because that’s what my mother will plan. That’s what she is planning.” He has no idea if this is still true-he hasn’t made contact with the outside world since Yui promised to take Daichi down to Faerie. 

“War?” Shimizu’s features slacken just a bit, and then her expression hardens. “War. That would be unwise on their part.” 

“They’re not going to care.” Suga tells her. “But if you-,” 

“I cannot reason with Death.” Shimizu snaps, and her voice is icy. “I’ve told you this before. If you wish to present this to Shirabu, then you may. But there is very little I can do when Death is concerned. He is not partial to listening to me.” 

“And he will listen to Shirabu?” 

“I’ve told you-,” Shimizu snaps, “If you’ve ever been willing to _listen_! Sugawara, you’ve been so utterly caught up in rescuing your prince that you’ve neglected to mention the possibility of war. I understand.” 

“I just-,” Suga rakes his hands through his hair. “It slipped my mind. It’s possible that she’s withdrawn by now. I thought-,” 

“Clearly you didn’t.” Shimizu says. “I have a kingdom to worry about as well, you know. I have people that I have to protect. Or didn’t you wonder?” 

“I know.” Suga says, and Shimizu holds up a hand. All the fight has drained out of her, and it leaves nothing but a tension that’s evident in every part of her. Her grey eyes are steely and dark, and she turns. 

“I have to talk to Shirabu.” She says wearily. “Alone. Who did I assign to look after you the last time?” 

“Saeko-san.” Suga replies, and Shimizu nods. “But, wait, I can-,” 

“No,” The Queen of Faerie is an imposing sight on a bad day, and she draws herself up with all the grace that she deserves. “I can’t be worrying about you, too. I can’t be distracted from the affairs of the Fey because you’re off, wandering the halls and stirring up trouble here and there. I can’t learn about the possibility of a war weeks after you’ve learned about it, particularly when it concerns my own country. You understand?” She puts a hand to her temples and concentrates for a moment before glancing back at him. “Understand?” She repeats.

“I understand.” Suga says, somewhat miserably. 

“I’ll tell Saeko to keep you here. You’re not to leave until I return. If Ushijima or Tendou lets you out before, you’re allowed. If Shirabu lets you out, you’re allowed. If Saeko takes you out, you’re allowed. Other than that, no. Understood?” She rubs a hand over her face. 

“Your Majesty.” Suga replies, eyes trained on the floor. “I can be of use. I can get through to my mother. I can convince her to stop this.” 

“Sugawara, frankly, I am not willing to put my faith in your plans. In order to get your Prince down here, your servant was killed.” Shimizu points out, and Suga bites his lower lip so hard he draws blood. 

“She won’t care about Yui.” He says, a hint of bitterness making its way into his voice. 

“I don’t-,” Shimizu looks like she wants to slap him. “All right. We are going to sit here until Saeko arrives, and then I am going to go handle things and you are going to stay here.” It leaves no room for discussion. 

Suga has been in enough rooms with his mother to know what it means when somebody puts their foot down. So he leans against the wall, and rests his head, and wonders a million things. 

Saeko’s hair is a bright beacon when she appears, and there’s a frown on her face. “My Queen,” She says, kneeling before Shimizu, who gestures for her to rise.

“I’m sorry to call you here again,” Shimizu says, and she turns around. “But it is necessary. Thank you, Saeko.” 

“It’s not a problem, Your Majesty.” 

“Shall I put up a barrier?” Shimizu muses, almost to herself. “Yes, I think that would be best. Saeko, Sugawara, please stand inside of the room.” 

She does some sort of complicated gesture with her hands, and a screen of pale light flickers to life over the door for a moment, before fading. 

As soon as she’s gone, Saeko shoots Suga down with a death glare. 

“What the hell,” She asks him, “Did you _do_?” 

“I didn’t do anything!” Suga protests, and Saeko laughs. 

“Right, because if that were the case, I wouldn’t be called here to babysit the human prince while my Queen goes off to talk to a shady asshole who hates everybody.” 

“You never sent anybody!” Suga says, and Saeko stares at him in utter disbelief before throwing her head back and roaring with laughter. 

“I sent Ushijima!” She tells him. “You didn’t see him?” 

“I-wait-you know Ushijima?” Suga manages weakly. 

“Of course I know Ushijima,” Saeko says, looking somewhat displeased. “Though it took me a hell of a time to get ahold of him on short notice. I see. Well, since we’ve got an abundance of time on our time here, I can teach you. I had a busy schedule, but somebody saw fit to plow right through that.” She glares again, but there’s no real bite to it.

“Listen,” Suga says defensively, “My mother is-,” 

“Your mother is crazy.” Saeko fills in. “We’ve all heard about your mother, Sugawara.” 

“She’s not crazy.” He says defensively. “She just...she just…” 

“Ushijima went to see her this afternoon, after he was supposed to meet you.” Saeko says offhandedly, and Suga jerks his head up to look at her. “He seemed...apprehensive. It’s a bit odd to see your most formidable military commander looking apprehensive. Not to mention that Tendou’s overworked, and he’s been rather snappish lately, and when Ushijima is here he’s better behaved.” 

“Ushijima went to see my mother?” Suga asks, throat dry. He can’t have. She’ll see that as-

“Shimizu-sama sent him up.” Saeko says. “She’s not incompetent, Sugawara. She knows what she’s doing.” 

“I need to see-,” 

“You don’t need to see anybody.” Saeko says. “Listen, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll sit right here, and we’ll talk until Her Majesty comes back and then if you’re still partial to flirting with some kind of danger, you can place whatever mad request you’ve thought of this time.” 

“It’s not a mad request!” Suga says. “If I can see Shirabu and Shimizu again-if I can get back down to the mines-,” 

“There’s no way you’re going back to the mines.” Saeko replies flatly. “You went once without her knowledge and Her Majesty was furious. It was barely permissible. Barely. The only reason you got out of _that_ one without some sort of fucking house arrest was because Shirabu was with you.” 

“He said it wasn’t-,” 

“Is he the King?” Saeko hisses, clearly annoyed, and there’s a long silence. “I didn’t think so.” 

Suga holds back on a response, and the seconds tick by as Saeko cools down. She shoots him a glare. 

“I do whatever I have to,” She says. “My queen needs me.” 

Suga is reminded, bizarrely, of Tooru. Tooru, who cried in his bedroom for months after the carriage accident with his parents, and who became fiercely loyal to him and Yui after.

“What about the rest of them?” He asks, “What about the guards? Where are they?” 

“Ushijima is aboveground, as I’ve said.” Saeko says. “Tendou is currently meeting with Ukai-san to talk about progress on the mines. Shirabu is, presumably, with Her Majesty.” 

“Doesn’t Shimizu-san take care of the mines, usually?” Suga asks, and Saeko snorts. 

“She’s busy, Sugawara. One can’t always check up on everything that one wants to personally.” 

Suga frowns for a few moments before speaking again. “Where is Shimizu-san?” 

“Business,” Saeko says shortly. “I told you that already.” 

“Right,” Suga says. “But what kind of-,” 

“I have no idea, Sugawara.” Saeko says, and she throws her hands up in the air. “I am your guard, not someone that you have permission to interrogate about the Queen of Faerie. If you’d like answers, you should ask-,” 

The ceiling shudders, and she cuts herself off. 

There’s a spider web of cracks spreading from a point in the center. Suga and Saeko stare at it for a moment before looking at each other. 

“Dammit.” Saeko says, and she shoves him out of the way just as it caves in and a large amount of soil, Ushijima Wakatoshi, and Sugawara Ayaka tumble through it. 

Suga gapes for a moment at the sight of his mother and Ushijima together, and then he hears Saeko yell some sort curse in a different language from underneath all the dirt and stones. 

“Pardon,” Ushijima says, as a sort of an afterthought. “But I’ve brought the human Queen. I need to see Her Majesty immediately.” 

***

Saeko is furious. Ushijima is puzzled. Suga is confused. His mother is curious. 

They’re all stuck. 

It’s an odd party. A human Prince, a Royal Guard of Faerie, a human Queen, and a lower guard. It seems like the beginning of a bad joke, the kind that Tooru would tell and then laugh at afterwards, insisting that it was funny. 

The first thing that Ushijima and Saeko tried to do was break the barrier, but that idea fails almost as soon as it begins. 

“It’s a barrier that’s meant to be unlocked from the outside.” Ushijima explains. “Her Majesty has spared no expense. It’s brilliantly done.” 

“Unfortunately for us.” Suga mutters, and Saeko shoots him a look. 

“Why is the human Queen here?” Saeko snaps, and Ushijima turns his cold green gaze to her. 

“She requested to come along, and I saw no harm in letting her convene with Shimizu-sama. That is what we are ultimately aiming for, is it not?” 

“They’ll panic when they find you gone, Mother!” Suga says, and he turns to her. “Did you tell anybody?” 

“There was nobody present.” Ayaka says, and her tone leaves no room for disagreement. “And Koushi, this is necessary. If all goes well, I should be back before sundown in any case. After we get you out of here, we can focus on-,” 

“I’m not leaving without Daichi,” Suga says, “And we can’t get him out today.” 

“Nobody knows where Sawamura is.” His mother replies. “They’re trying to track him now, but-,” 

“I know where he is.” Suga says urgently. “He’s here, he’s in Faerie, but I need you to listen to me. We can’t get him out without someone else, and that faerie isn’t here right now. You have to go back, Mother.” 

“I most certainly will not.” She says, and crosses her arms. “I came down to this hellhole to get my son back after he traded his life for that of a handmaid. Sawamura is a different matter. We will see about his return at a later date.” 

“Hellhole?” Saeko interrupts, and they both shift eyes to her. “To what are you referring, Sugawara-san?” 

“It’s nothing of consequence.” Ayaka says, smiling, but it’s the fake smile that she uses in council meetings and around their distant relatives. “There are many less than desirable places in the above world as well. And my son has remained here long enough, don’t you think? The only human who seems to enjoy Faerie is that handmaid of mine.” 

Ushijima doesn’t say a word, but there’s something in his eyes that Suga doesn’t like. 

“Mother,” Suga says, and Ayaka holds up a hand. She takes a step towards Ushijima and Saeko. 

“Quiet, Koushi.” She says. “Speaking of the handmaid, is there a chance that you’d take her back in exchange for my son? I’ve heard that your Queen has taken a particular liking to her.” 

“That is beyond our control.” Ushijima says, face impassive. 

“Mm.” Suga’s mother says, and there’s something dangerous in her eyes. “Well. We’ll just have to wait until she returns then, won’t we?” 

“Indeed.” Saeko says, and they don’t speak again for a while. 

***

When Shimizu finally returns, it’s with Shirabu and Tendou in tow, and she stares at the scene in front of her. 

Ushijima and Saeko drop into matching bows instantly. Suga’s mother steps forward. Suga steps back. 

“Sugawara-san.” Shimizu says after a pause. “To what do we owe the distinct honor?” 

“Your subordinate agreed to return me to this place.” Ayaka says. “I’d like to return my son to the above world.” 

Shimizu smiles icily. “Ah,” She says. “That isn’t possible, unfortunately.” 

“Why not?” 

“Well,” Shimizu says. “The bargain that we made with the royal family of Miliwyn remains intact. It has been transferred from human to human, yes, but it remains. And the bargain that was driven was that in exchange for the curse on Sugawara Koushi being held, another human would come down and spend the rest of their lives with us. So unless you’re offering, Your Majesty, Koushi-san is staying with us.” She says this all in the same cool tone, and Ayaka’s eyes narrow. 

“Surely there must be a way to-,” 

“Unless you’re offering.” Shimizu repeats, and her tone leaves no room for disagreement. 

Ayaka sits back, and Suga looks at Saeko, who shrugs back at him. 

“Koushi pricked himself.” Ayaka says. “Surely that must negate our earlier bargain.” 

“I’m afraid not.” Shimizu replies. “You see, we upheld our end. Your Prince is the one who decided to break it.” 

There’s an icy silence while the two women stare each other down, and then Ayaka raises her head, something frightening in her eyes. 

“My handmaid.” She says. “Would it be possible to return her to Faerie in exchange for my son?” 

Shimizu nods once. 

“Mother,” Suga says, and there’s horror leaking into his tone. “We can’t. I came down here so that Hitoka could go back up. You can’t do this.” 

“What of my son’s husband?” His mother continues, ignoring him completely.

“There was nothing of him in our original bargain.” Shimizu says. “That is a matter between Death and your son.” 

Suga blinks several times before what she says registers. 

“Koushi-san.” Shirabu says, stepping forward, eyes bored and half obscured by his bangs. “Walk with me. Your Majesty.” He bows to her, and she dismisses him with a wave. 

It’s an odd picture. Tendou is snorting about something behind one hand gleefully, Ushijima is watching the scene unfold. Shirabu is gesturing him impatiently, and Shimizu and his mother are staring each other down with steely gazes. Saeko is slumped against the wall, eyes flicking back and forth between Queens.

Suga leaves the room on Shirabu’s heels. 

“I heard you wanted an audience.” Shirabu says, and they turn a corner. “And Her Majesty asked me what I could do. I’ve negotiated.” 

“Can I take Daichi back?” Suga asks. “Can I at least _see_ Daichi again?” 

“No and no.” Shirabu says. “You’re too impatient. I’m not a miracle worker. In order to get Sawamura down safely, your other friend came across something that she shouldn’t have and he pitched a fit when he discovered that.” He shudders a little, and Suga stops. 

“What do you mean?” He says. “Discovered something? I thought Yui died in coming to Faerie.” 

“Not exactly.” Shirabu says. “She made it safely. Then her memories were restored, and we had to kill her.” 

“ _What?_ ” 

Shirabu turns to look at him, clearly slightly annoyed, and Suga wants to slap him, wants to scream and make him realize what he did because that was Yui. That was his best friend. 

“Listen, Sugawara.” He says. “The entire matter of the mines, your Prince and your friend is extremely guarded. Shimizu would kill me if I told you without her permission. And I really do mean she would kill me, not that drawn-out comparison you humans use to describe anger.” 

“So I need to talk to Shimizu.” Suga concludes, and Shirabu growls before taking a step forward. 

“Sugawara!” He says. “I can’t tell you _everything_. Here’s what I can tell you. Getting into Faerie isn’t an easy process, and it’s made harder if you take the route that your friend took. She went straight to the mines. She died.” 

“Would you stop-,” Suga grits the words out, but Shirabu is a step ahead of him. 

“No.” He says flatly. “She’s dead. She’s not returning to this world, and frankly she shouldn’t have been with you to begin with. Her Majesty did you a service.” 

“So if you couldn’t get _anything_ done,” Suga says, forcing the words out through gritted teeth. “What did you accomplish?” 

“I’ll choose to ignore your tone.” Shirabu says, eyes narrowed at him. “But the gist of it is this; he’s agreed to a bargain that’s the same as the one currently trapping you here. You Prince will be let free the moment you can find someone to permanently inhabit that cave that he’s currently stuck in.” 

There’s a long pause while Suga puts his head in his hands and breathes deeply and Shirabu examines the chandelier above their heads. 

“Let me get this perfectly clear.” Suga says, voice muffled by his hands. “I have to find two people to stay down here permanently in order for myself and my husband to go back aboveground.” 

“That’s correct.” Shirabu says boredly. “Really, it was the best deal you were going to get. An audience was never going to happen, and I don’t know what you were thinking, trying to learn magic, but that would never have worked against Death.” 

“How do you know about that?” 

“Minds, Sugawara.” 

“Right.” 

They’re silent for a long moment and then Suga lifts his head. 

“What did you mean when you said you had to kill Yui?” He asks, very slowly. 

“That information is protected by the Queen herself.” Shirabu says, and Suga sees red. 

“She was my best friend.” He says. “She worked so hard to get Daichi down to this place. And you killed her. I’ll ask you again. What did you mean when you said you had to kill her?” 

“I’ll answer you again.” Shirabu sneers, and there’s something unpleasant in his expression. “It’s classified, Sugawara. You want answers, you go to Shimizu-sama.”  
Suga swings a fist and Shirabu catches it with a speed that he doesn’t even see. His eyes are dark. 

“Pathetic.” He says. “Truly pathetic. I’ll never understand what Shimizu-sama sees in you stupid humans.” 

And he stalks back towards Suga’s ruined rooms, where nothing is waiting except scathing words and mindless bargaining. 

Suga just stands in the hallway, nearly vibrating with anger, and he remains that way until Saeko comes to get him several minutes later, murmuring that his mother wants to see him.

***

Suga isn’t sure of the last time that he really spoke to his mother. It certainly wasn’t like this, not perched on a ruined bed with a cup of tea in his hands that he hasn’t touched, fetched for him by a Fey woman, watching his mother’s artificial smile from across a room as she examines the windows. 

“It’s fascinating down here.” She murmurs. “Truly. I would love to send a researcher down to send notes. Do you think they’d allow it?” 

“Never.” Suga says dully. “Mother, what are you doing here?” 

“I came to get you back, Koushi.” Ayaka says, disapproval laced through her tone at the question. “Really, it’s not too difficult of a concept to grasp.” 

“No, you didn’t.” Suga says. “Do you want to get rid of Hitoka?” 

“There’s nothing I have against the handmaid, though you always seemed to believe otherwise.” She says. “No, from what I’ve heard she’s been having fainting spells. One of the Helnian guards seems to believe she’s been bewitched. If that really is the case, it’s better that she serves the rest of her life here, isn’t it?” 

“She hasn’t-fainting-what?” Suga asks, nearly dropping his tea. 

“Apparently she’s been asking for a Shimizu.” Ayaka says dismissively. “And I believe we’ve found one down here. The evidence all seems to point towards the Queen, doesn’t it? Perhaps she was so desperate for companionship that she resorted to spells.” 

“Shimizu wouldn’t curse anybody like that.” Suga murmurs. “When Hitoka came down at first, she wouldn’t have had a reason. She’s perfectly capable of running a kingdom on her own.” 

“Speak up, Koushi.” His mother says. “I can’t hear you half the time you speak.” 

“Shimizu-san wouldn’t have needed to bewitch anybody.” Suga says, a little stronger this time. “She can run her own kingdom.” 

“Is that so?” Ayaka seems entirely disinterested. “Anyway, the harder part is finding a way to get your husband back up. We can exchange you for the handmaid, but I’m not sure we can find anybody else who would willing go. Perhaps one of the Helnians? They haven’t been of much help, and I’m sure they’d be willing to sacrifice themselves for their Prince.” 

“ _Mother!_ ” Suga says, horrified. They’re loyal, but not blindly loyal. Without orders from their crown, they’ll be doing nothing of the sort. 

“It’s an idea.” She says. “If not, we can always find another servant.” 

“Mother.” Suga says again, more forcefully. “We are not finding anybody. This is not a competition to see who is the best candidate to spend the rest of their lives in-,” 

“Do you think I don’t know that?” Ayaka snaps. “But we need to get you up somehow, and since you refuse to go without your husband, we must be prepared to take such measures. Koushi, can’t you behave for once in your life? This mess wouldn’t even be necessary if you had just stuck to our original bargain.” 

Suga is silent then, because she’s right. The only reason they’re all down here is because of him. 

“Now,” His mother says, and there’s something angry in her eyes. “I will return to our kingdom, and arrange for the preparations to be made for your exchange. We’ll sort out Sawamura’s when you are safe with us. Am I understood?” 

“Understood, Mother.” Suga says softly, and she gives him a brisk nod. 

“I’m proud of you, Koushi.” She says. “You’ve withstood all of this for months. You’ll be coming home soon.” 

Suga does not grace that with a response. He sets his tea, still untouched, down on the floor, and lies down on the bed, facing the window and looking out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> daichi shows up next chapter! wow it's like he's one half of the ship or a mc or something
> 
> kudos and comments make my day!!


	15. Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i've looked at this too much here have it  
> also WE DID IT!!  
>  ~~well not quite because we're ALMOST THERE and that'll be some fluffy stuff and resolutions ~~~~~~

Ayaka goes back to Miliwyn the next day. Shimizu and her guards go to formally see her off, as well as Suga. They all stand there as she promises to have two candidates for exchange very soon and kisses Suga on the cheek and then steps through the portal that Shimizu creates with several sweeping movements. 

As soon as it closes, all of the faeries save for Ushijima slump against opposite walls, all fight and tension draining out of their frames. Shimizu’s stance still appears somewhat rigid, and she tilts her head back with her eyes closed. Something about her looks younger. Shirabu looks more tired than he has in weeks. Tendou looks like if he so much as laughs, he’ll fall over. Even Ushijima looks strained as he stands upright. 

“Your mother is a handful, Sugawara.” Tendou says. “Think you can tell her to stay in her own kingdom for a while?” 

“She shouldn’t be coming down here again.” Suga says firmly, and he turns to Shimizu. “Your Majesty, since my mother is finding a person to replace both my husband and myself, may I bring him up from the mines?” 

“I can’t tell if this is a scheme of yours or not, but the Queen of your kingdom has given us your word that she will have new humans to exchange within the week’s end, so the answer is yes.” Shimizu cracks open one eye to look at him, and gestures at her guards. “Take any one of them with you.” 

“I will go, Your Majesty.” Ushijima says. Suga’s not surprised-he’s the only one who doesn’t look dead on his feet. What he’s more surprised about is the fact that his mother, a mere human such as himself, has had such a toll on the Queen of Faerie and her Royal Guard. 

“Very well.” Shimizu says. “If you aren’t back by sundown, we’ll send someone to fetch you. Understood?” 

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Ushijima bows low, and then he begins to walk towards the cliffs that lead to the mines. Suga runs a bit to catch up with him, trying not to let happiness bubble up in his chest, because it’s so likely that this is a trap, that he won’t get to see Daichi again, that something will go wrong. But Shimizu would have told him no outright if that were the case. 

That means he’s really getting to see Daichi again. 

He hasn’t really understood how much he’s missed him until now, but now it feels like there’s been an aching weight in his chest that he can’t remedy. It’s slightly lighter now, and as he and Ushijima walk in silence he wants to yell to the forest that he’s going to get to see Daichi again. 

What he doesn’t want to think about is what his mother is doing to get two innocents down to Faerie.

They reach the cliffs, and Ushijima jumps over neatly, Suga following him a moment later. They land hard on the floor of the mines, where it’s bumpy and rocky and dark. 

Ushijima leads him through various twists and turns until they reach the cave that contains Suga’s husband. Ushijima neatly parts the dull curtain that Shimizu had put in place the last time they were here, and there’s Daichi, in the middle of the cave. He looks deathly pale and completely unconscious. 

Suga stops short. Ushijima keeps moving. 

He walks to where Daichi is and picks him up easily, slinging him over one shoulder and turning back around. Suga has one hand over his mouth by this point. 

“What are you _doing_?” He asks, voice cracking halfway through. 

“I am returning Sawamura-san to you, as was your request and the request of her Majesty.” Ushijima says. He sounds confused. “Was this not what you wanted?” 

“No, but-yes-be _careful_!” Suga says, and he runs forward to check Daichi’s pulse. It’s sluggish, but there, and Suga wants to collapse, because he’s alive. 

“Ah, yes.” Ushijima says, and he transfers Daichi to his arms instead. “Sometimes I forget how fragile you humans can be. Death can claim you so easily.” 

A germ of an idea begins to form in Suga’s mind at Ushijima’s words. 

“Like with Yui.” He says slowly, and Ushijima turns to him. 

“What?” 

“Like with Yui.” Suga says again, stronger. “I need to talk to Shimizu. I need to talk to Shirabu. I need to talk to Death. Now.” 

“That’s impossible.” Ushijima says, brow furrowed. “Death does not-,” 

“Where can I find him?” Suga asks, and he looks at Ushijima expectantly. “I must speak with him.” 

“Sugawara.” Ushijima says, and he sounds exasperated, which is to say that he sounds exactly as he always does with a touch of irritation in his voice. “I thought you had gone over these details with Shirabu and-,” 

“It appears I need to go over them again.” Suga says, voice somewhat icy. “As there are more important matters at stake now. I would rather not sacrifice any more innocents than I need to, Ushijima-san.” 

Ushijima doesn’t say another word, affirmative or negative. He stands as he is, and looks at Suga for a moment before giving him a quick nod. They head back up in silence. 

***

“Yachi Hitoka’s mind is a maelstrom.” Shirabu says, nose wrinkled. “Are you sure you’d like to visit it?” 

“Yes, I’m sure.” Suga says. “It’s her life on the line. I’d like her to know what she’s agreeing to, or even if she’s agreeing to it in the first place.” 

“Very well.” Shirabu says, and he reaches out to touch Suga’s shoulder lightly before the world dissolves into a dark mess of thoughts. 

The only mind Suga has ever visited is Yui’s. It was comforting and strong. It felt like warm rain and stone under his fingers. It felt like something that he knew. He’d only assumed that Hitoka’s mind would feel familiar as well. 

It does not.

Hitoka’s mind is a trembling, cold thing. It shivers and yearns for things it cannot have, things it will not be granted. Its thoughts are jumbled, confused, terrified. It feels a little like Faerie, and Suga enters it with caution. 

Hitoka is sitting in the corner of a small room. It’s worn through, the walls look like they are collapsing, and the image of Helnian guards in full armor is still present. She is fearful. It is not unwarranted. 

“Hitoka?” Suga says tentatively, and she looks up from her position. 

“Sugawara-san.” She says, and there’s a weary look in her eyes, as though she knows what’s going on. “You’re here. Was it Shirabu-san or Kiyoko?” 

“Shirabu.” Suga says. “Hitoka...I have a request to make of you.” 

“Yes?” 

“Daichi and I are being allowed to return to the surface.” Suga says, and he keeps reminding himself of Shimizu’s words as he speaks. “But Death is asking for two humans in exchange for our lives, as my parents’ bargain is still intact.” 

“You want me to go.” Hitoka breathes. “You want me to go back?” 

“Only if you’re comfortable.” Suga says quickly, reaching out to her. “I don’t want to press this on you, especially considering that it’s my fault that you went down in the first place, and-,” 

Hitoka lurches to her feet and throws her arms around him. 

The hug is a shock. He doesn’t remember hugs or embraces as a child, unless they were customary, and Yui rarely hugged him, despite her teasing. Tooru was certainly never going to be the one to do it, and it would never have occured to Shouyou. 

The physical contact is nice, and Suga lets himself relax against Hitoka’s tight hold. Her hands shake slightly as they fist in the fabric of his shirt, but she holds on tight until he feels something wet on his shirtfront. 

“Suga-san,” Hitoka says, pulling away and bowing low to him. “Thank you.” There are tears on her cheeks, and Suga blinks. 

“You don’t have to go back.” He says, leaning down to wipe them away. “I promise you don’t have to if you-,” 

“I have wanted to return to Kiyoko for so long.” Hitoka says, voice trembling. “They’re accusing me of being bewitched. They want me to be brought on trial. I’m so afraid, Suga-san. The human world is not kind to people like me.” She takes a deep breath. 

“Oh, Hitoka.” Suga whispers.

“And I love her.” Hitoka continues. “She was kind to me when no one else was. She was caring. She did not care about her position or mine. She would sing me to sleep.” She says, somewhat wistfully. “Some nights. It was in some language that I couldn’t ever understand. Her voice is beautiful.” 

Suga thinks about Kiyoko’s stark reaction whenever Hitoka is brought up. He thinks of her recessions to her chambers. He thinks of the loneliness of being a Queen of a foreign land, and he thinks of her outburst when he suggested that she’d enchanted Hitoka. 

Perhaps love can be found under a darkened sky with a lullaby in a language that no one knows. 

“I’m going to miss you.” Is what he says instead. “Hitoka, I’m going to miss you so much.” 

She hugs him again as a response. “I’m going to miss you too, Suga-san. But it isn’t as though we’ll never see each other again. We have all sorts of magic, and we can visit you.” 

They stand there in the room for a long time, holding onto each other. 

***

“Hitoka is coming back.” Shimizu says, voice vibrating with happiness. “Sugawara, I underestimated you.” Her grey eyes are gleaming. 

“You still need one more human life.” Shirabu says. Suga glares. Shimizu’s shoulders slump just a fraction of an inch. Tendou cackles from his corner of the room. 

“I’ve thought of this.” Suga replies. “And all Death said was that I needed a human life, correct?” 

“That’s correct.” 

“Then Yui will be my second human life.” Suga says. “It was never specified whether the human needed to be alive or dead.” 

There’s dead silence and then Shirabu starts to laugh. It’s really more of a cackle, but he tilts his head back and laughs and Shimizu’s eyes gain a little more of their light.

“You can probably get away with that one.” Shirabu says. “Congratulations, Sugawara. You’re on your way back up.” 

***

 

“This is where I leave you.” Shimizu says. She keeps looking over her shoulder nervously as though something is coming after them, even though the real danger is in front of them. 

They’ve been allowed all this way by Ukai. Shimizu has accompanied him back down to the mines to see Death. This is the final hurdle. They’ve even spoken beforehand to arrange what Suga’s going to say, what he won’t say, how he’ll present himself. Shimizu and Shirabu both have coached him on this. The room in front of him is shielded by a single, worn curtain that looks like it’s unraveling at the edges.

Suga steels himself and nods. This is what he’s wanted, isn’t it? 

“How should I signal you when I’m ready to come back out?” He asks, and Shimizu looks at him, puzzled before breathing out. 

“No need.” She says shortly. “I’ll know.” She twists her hands together into a knot and looks at him for a moment. 

They’re both silent for a long time, and then Shimizu looks at him.

“Be careful.” She says, and then she’s backing away, tiny steps at a time. Suga thinks, somewhat darkly, that it’s the first time that he’s seen her when she’s afraid. 

He pushes the curtain in front of him aside and steps into the room. 

Shirabu has given him several lectures and warnings and things of the sort. Don’t stay any longer than you must, keep a handle on yourself, don’t raise your voice. The standard things that should be normal for somebody to remember. 

Suga looks at Death and he blinks several times. 

Death takes the form of a young boy with silvery hair who is surrounded by dead flowers. His eyes are hazel and innocent and the pupils are black enough to swallow a room. They remind Suga of the lake that he fell through to reach Faerie to begin with. 

Death takes the form of Suga at age seven. 

“Sugawara Koushi.” He says, and it’s in Suga’s voice but there’s something just slightly off and it makes Suga flinch. “Why have you come here?” 

“I want to talk.” Suga says, and he tries not to let his voice shake but it’s inevitable. The room feels cold and too bright. 

“So talk.” The boy in front of him says, picking up one of the dead flowers and picking the brown petals off. “I assume that Kenjirou and Kiyoko let you down here for a reason.” 

“I-,” Suga breaks off as the petals gather at the boy’s feet. “I-,” 

“You’re not very articulate.” Death tells him. He sounds disinterested. “Perhaps another form?” 

Suddenly Tooru is sitting in front of him, brown eyes wide and curious as he studies him. It’s such a split-second transformation that Suga doesn’t even register it for a moment. 

“I want to bring my husband up to the human realms again.” Suga says quickly, before Death can say anything else, and in front of him, Tooru raises an eyebrow. 

“I agreed to that.” He says, and picks up another flower. “As long as you are willing to exchange another human for his life.” 

“I’ve already done so.” Suga says, and he closes his eyes.

It seems like everything in the room stops. The circulation of air, the soft rustling of dead flower petals, the movement of Suga’s hands. Everything freezes as Death takes in his words.

“Pardon?” Death says in front of him, and there’s something low and dangerous in his voice. “Sugawara Koushi, I can assure you that you have not.” 

“Michimiya Yui died on her way down to Faerie.” Suga says, and he cracks one eye open to see Shouyou there instead of Tooru, flower petals crushed in one fist, brown eyes furious. “A human for a human. That the human in question was living was never a condition.” 

It’s exactly what Shimizu has told him to say, word for word. He speaks quietly and evenly, just as Shirabu has told him to. He’s done everything right. He hates that he’s even arguing this. It was never part of his plan.

He just wants Daichi, now. 

“Michimiya Yui.” Death spits out the name, and the room feels hot and stuffy all of a sudden, so much so that Suga can’t breathe. “I reaped her life once. She was not supposed to be back in this world. So tell me why, Sugawara.” 

“I don’t know.” Suga gasps. “I can’t tell you.” 

“Uninteresting.” Death says, and the heat dissipates by degrees. “That’s what you are. Uninteresting, Sugawara Koushi. Both of my lovers have been far more exciting than you.” 

Suga doesn’t say anything.

“Michimiya Yui,” Death says thoughtfully. “I met her, in another life.” He runs a hand through Shouyou’s bright hair. “I loved her. But not quite as you did.” 

“Please,” Suga says. He doesn’t want to listen to this right now. “Please let me take my husband and leave this place.” 

Death looks at him scornfully. “Life for life.” He says. “You’ve made your case for Michimiya, which Kiyoko probably came up with. Bitch.” He curls his lip. “But you’ll have to convince me, and fortunately for me, you’re rather bad at that, Sugawara.” 

“You can’t disobey a contract.” Suga says, and anger slips into his voice, betraying him. “Life for life. Daichi for Yui. You can’t-,” 

“Michimiya is dead.” Death repeats. 

“She was still a life.” Suga says. “You must accept her.” 

“Must is a strong word.” Death says, scoffing. Shouyou is gone in an instant, replaced with Yui, and Suga wants to sob and hug her and at the same time he knows that it’s not real. “Did you know Michimiya Yui? Really?” 

“Of course I did.” Suga says, stung. “She was my best friend.” 

“Interesting.” Death says with Yui’s mouth. “Very interesting. Well, Sugawara, I knew her before. I knew her when she was still living as well.” 

“That’s not possible.” Suga says. “She’s been-,” 

“Resurrected is my guess.” Death says, and Suga stops talking. “Kenjirou did it, most likely. Nobody else has the guts. He loves me, you know.” He says after a moment. “Though it doesn’t seem like it.” 

“I want my husband.” Suga says, because it’s all he can manage at the moment. He can’t deal with trickery and deceit or to think of if Death is telling the truth. 

“You and your husband.” Death says, twirling a lock of Yui’s hair between her fingers. “Ridiculous, that’s what I thought. It was a marriage of convenience, wasn’t it? Why do you care for him?” 

“I want-,” 

“Answer the question, Sugawara.” Death says, voice dangerously low. 

There’s silence for a beat, and then Suga speaks. 

“Yui was my best friend,” He says. “And she told me that someday, somebody would wake me up and I would have to marry them. I was woken up. I was married. I don’t feel like explaining the intricacies of my relationship with you. All I need from you is Daichi, and you are the only obstacle left standing in my way. I have fought through faeries and my mother and…” He trails off for a moment. “I have gained permission.” He says at last. “Please let me pass.” 

Death tilts Yui’s head and for a long time, they consider each other. 

“Bring me Yachi Hitoka, take Sawamura Daichi and leave my realm.” He says coldly, and Suga bows before running away from the cavern as quickly as he can possibly go. His lungs feel like they’re bursting, and his chest wants to explode because they’re going home. There’s no more hardship ahead of them. 

Hitoka will spend her life with Kiyoko. There will be no needless war. And he and Daichi can relax for a while. 

There are no more curses or bargains. There is no more talking with Death, and no more begging Shirabu to teach him this and that and everything in between. There is no more rationing with Shimizu. There is no more waiting in his rooms for the blackness of day to come. 

He can tell that Shimizu knows the minute she sees him, because her face breaks open into a smile and she drops her staff with a loud clatter onto the floor of the cavern. 

“We contacted her today,” She says, and they walk quickly back towards where the exit out of the mines is. “She’s coming down tomorrow evening. That’s when you and Sawamura will be allowed to leave. Once the exchange is complete, the bargain’s terms will be fulfilled.” 

“Is Daichi awake?” Suga asks, because after all of this, he’d like to know. 

“Not yet.” Shimizu tells him. “Ushijima is working with him now, though. He should be awake soon.” 

“Thank God.” Suga breathes, and as they rise out of the mines, he swears Shimizu’s eyes are glistening with tears. 

Neither of them comment on it. 

***

True to Shimizu’s word, Daichi is not yet awake. Ushijima is gone, but there’s a glowing mark on Daichi’s wrist, so Suga figures it’s okay. He’s not leaving again, at least not until he’s conscious again, even if that lasts through tomorrow. 

The bed that Daichi’s on is just large enough that Suga can gently push him to the side and curl up against his side. He feels like a cat in some ways. Daichi’s skin is cool from the mines and the night air, and his breaths are steady. This, more than anything, is reassuring-knowing that Daichi is still alive and breathing. Each breath feels like a promise. The sky is bright outside with night. Months ago, this would have felt foreign - sleeping next to Daichi in Faerie as the sun slept with them.

Suga feels sleep bogging down his eyelids. 

After everything that they’ve been through, his feelings for Daichi seem remarkably clear. 

That night, Suga does not dream. It’s the first untroubled rest that he’s had in a long time. 

***

 

When Suga wakes up, he is surrounded by warmth. 

For a moment, he struggles to place it. And then fingers curl against his back lightly, and he forces his eyes open to look up at Daichi, who’s looking at him with open eyes and a half lit sky through the window. It’s a striking picture. 

Suga doesn’t say anything for a while, just drinks in the sight of Daichi, awake and alive and so warm and present that he doesn’t quite know what to do with himself. Daichi doesn’t speak, just draws him into an embrace that feels halfway desperate and halfway longing and entirely filled with fondness. 

They cling to each other like that for a long time. 

“You’re awake.” Suga breathes when they separate. “We came down to get you and your pulse was nearly gone.” 

“I’m awake.” Daichi confirms. His voice is slightly raspy from disuse. “And so are you.” He leans down to kiss Suga gently on the forehead. 

“We’re going home.” Suga says, all in a rush. “Shimizu got it confirmed. We can leave, finally. We don’t have to ever come back. And I’ll understand if you don’t want to stay with me, when we return. I got you into this entire mess, and I won’t be-,” 

Daichi stops him with a gentle kiss, this one against his lips. It feels like a promise and Suga lets his eyes close as he savors the feeling of kissing Daichi without any sort of urgency attached, without the feeling that he’s about to slip away at any moment. 

“I love you.” Daichi says simply when they separate. “So no, I’m not leaving you when we reach the surface. I’m staying with you, Koushi. Maybe we can go somewhere - somewhere that isn’t Miliwyn or Helnia or Faerie. Somewhere quiet.” 

The door opens. 

“They awaken!” Saeko crows from where she’s standing on the threshold. “Sugawara, Shimizu is all set to make the portal. Yachi-chan will come through first, and then you two can head through the other way.” 

“Saeko-san.” Suga says, because as much as he desperately wants to go home, he knows that Shimizu can wait another few moments and he’d really like to continue kissing Daichi. “We’ll be along in a moment. Thank you. For everything.” He adds, and hopes that it’s enough. 

Saeko waves it off, but she leaves soon enough and Suga leans up to kiss Daichi again. 

Their first kiss is always going to have the memory of Hitoka’s disappearance tied to it. Suga doesn’t want that, doesn’t want his first kiss with Daichi to be weighed down by the memory of curses and bargains.

This, he thinks, is good enough to be a first kiss. Daichi’s lips are soft and he cups Suga’s jaw with one hand and it feels right. It feels like this is how they were meant to start out. 

Eventually, Saeko comes back in. “Sugawara.” She says. “You and your husband really need to get going.” 

Suga breaks away from Daichi with a small whine of annoyance, and Saeko snorts. 

“Sorry,” She says, not looking remotely sorry. “Now get off your ass. You’ve got a human realm to get back to.” 

When they reach the main hall, Shimizu has the portal open. It’s a swirling mess of color, and through it, Suga can see a small figure running. The figure draws closer and closer until finally Yachi Hitoka throws herself out of the portal and into the Queen of Faerie’s outstretched arms, embracing her tightly and kissing her deeply. 

Shimizu’s face is alight with pure joy. She holds Hitoka as though she’s holding something precious, and her grey eyes seem less like storm clouds and more like molten silver today. They gleam when she and Hitoka break apart, and Hitoka sobs something that Suga doesn’t catch. Shimizu murmurs something in reply, and then Hitoka spins around to face Suga. 

_Thank you,_ she mouths, and then she buries her face in Shimizu’s shoulder. 

Shimizu gestures with one hand to the remnants of the portal disinterestedly. Daichi looks at him, and Suga nods. They’re about to step through when he remembers something. 

“Shimizu?” He asks. “May I speak with you?” When she nods, he looks around. “Privately?” 

“You may.” She says, looking somewhat displeased. They walk into a side corridor and she faces him expectantly. 

“When I was down there, with Death.” Suga says. “He told me that Yui had been resurrected by Shirabu. He said that she had been alive in a previous life. He said that he loved her. I am asking you now to tell me the truth about my friend.” 

“I remember Michimiya Yui.” Shimizu says after a pause. “She was full of life. She loved many people. She loved Death. Everything that he told you is true. Yui was resurrected by Shirabu as a bargaining piece to use against Death when the time came. He loves Death, true, but loving someone does not mean that you are not afraid of them. Shirabu is terrified of dying.” 

“But faeries are immortal, aren’t they?” Suga asks. 

“Not quite.” Shimizu replies. “We live ageless lives. This much is true. However, there are ways of killing us. Shirabu lives in fear that someday his life will be claimed by his lover and he will cease to exist. It is not a pretty truth, but there it is.” 

“So he brought her back to life.” Suga says. 

“And now she is dead again.” Shimizu says. “And I doubt he’ll be attempting it a second time. When Death does finally take him, it will not be violent. He will live many days yet. He’s not going anywhere.” 

“I see.” Suga says. He smiles. “Thank you for telling me, Shimizu-san. I hope that you and Hitoka are happy together for many years.” 

“And the same to you and Sawamura-san.” Shimizu says. “Speaking of which, aren’t you supposed to be heading back to your realm right about now?” 

“Yes.” Suga says. He shakes his head for a moment. “It’s strange. I feel like I’ve been in Faerie for several years and yet it’s only been a few weeks.” 

“Time moves differently in our world.” Shimizu says with a mysterious smile. And then they’re walking back out into the hall, where Daichi and Hitoka are waiting. Hitoka looks slightly intimidated by Daichi, and Daichi looks only at Suga, who smiles and steps forward to take his hands. 

“After we get back,” He murmurs, pressing a kiss to Daichi’s kiss. “We are taking a long, long honeymoon. Very far from Miliwyn.” 

“That sounds wonderful.” Daichi says, and immediately backtracks. “Not that Miliwyn isn’t lovely too, it’s just that-,” 

“Miliwyn is nothing but forests.” Suga says, wrinkling his nose. “It’s quite worn out its charm for me. I’d like to go somewhere different. I hear Helnia is nice this time of year.” He adds, shooting a sly look at Daichi. 

“We’ll see.” Daichi says, looking like he’s suppressing a smile. He turns toward the portal. “Wherever we go, it’ll be somewhere nice.” 

“Refreshing.” Suga says. “Relaxing. I think it will be a nice change of pace.” 

“I think you’re right.” Daichi says, and he turns around to bow low to Shimizu. “Thank you for everything you’ve done, Your Majesty.” 

“Thank you.” Suga echoes and he turns to Hitoka. “I’m going to miss you.” 

“I’ll miss you too, Suga-san.” She says, and she grins at him. “But I can visit. Now, go! I want some time alone with Kiyoko!” She waves her hand as if shooing them away, but her cheeks are red as she says it. 

“As the lady commands.” Daichi says, and he steps into the portal, tugging Suga with him. The last sight Suga sees of Faerie is Hitoka smiling at him and Shimizu smiling at Hitoka. 

Stepping into the portal is like stepping into thin air, and Suga has the sensation of falling, tethered only by Daichi’s hand. It seems like they fall and fall and fall for hours but then they’re hitting the main hall of the palace in Miliwyn, hitting cold carpeted stone and everything is over. 

There’s a moment when Suga opens his eyes and looks around, taking in the shocked expressions of the people around them. His mother looks triumphant, eyes bright. Tooru looks shocked, and he turns to Iwaizumi who is sitting next to him and wearing a mask of emotion that looks like a mix of relief and confusion. Shouyou isn’t present, but all the members of the formal court are completely silent. 

“We’re back.” Suga announces, exhausted, and closes his eyes to bury his face in Daichi’s shoulder as the room explodes into chaos around them. 

Tooru is yelling something at him, and his mother is laughing half-hysterically. Iwaizumi appears to be saying something to Daichi, and the members of the court are all firing questions at them, but Suga doesn’t want to answer them. 

They’re back. 

That’s all that matters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kudos and comments make my day!!  
> the epilogue is coming very very soon as well and that will be the final(!!!) part of this


	16. Epilogue

“I’m not opposed to the idea, per se.” Tooru muses, one finger absently rubbing circles on the wood in front of him. “But see, Koushi, I think that it’d be much better if it was some sort of blue.” 

Suga huffs exasperatedly. They’ve been going back and forth for the better part of a half hour, and he’s starting to get tired of being bent over a large bowl of water in the middle of the table. Tooru had gotten into contact with Hitoka and Shimizu a few months ago and Shimizu had enchanted some water so that they could look through it and communicate.

“You asked for my advice and I gave it.” Suga says, amused. “Daichi, what do you think?” 

“It’s Oikawa’s ball.” Daichi calls from his place in the tiny kitchen that their cottage has. “But I like traditional colors, myself.” 

Tooru makes a face through the water. “I don’t want to wear orange, Sawamura.” He says. “That’s utterly ridiculous. The locals may have no taste whatsoever, but this is not some everyday ball. This is my engagement ball. I want something elegant.” 

“Orange can be elegant.” Daichi argues, and he comes over to stand next to Suga. “If used in the correct way.” 

“Ridiculous.” Tooru says dismissively, waving a hand. “Hajime thinks the whole thing is ridiculous, says he doesn’t need a ball. Isn’t that silly? I think we rather need some good news around here.” 

“Mm.” Suga says, holding back a laugh. “Utterly. Listen, Tooru, riveting as this is, can you redirect us to Hitoka? I’d like to talk to her.” 

“But Koushi,” Tooru whines. “I haven’t seen you in _months_. I’m lonely.” 

“You have Iwaizumi.” Daichi says flatly.

“That’s a different type of company.” Tooru says. “Although I am glad that he agreed to this. I was worried for so long.” He heaves a sigh. “I can redirect you to Hitoka. But know that I’m not dropping this!” 

“We’ll see you next week.” Suga says. “Maybe your inspiration will have come to you by then.” 

“Perhaps.” Tooru says. He waves them goodbye and leans out of the frame, and the water returns to its natural clear color. 

Hitoka appears a few moments later, waving goodbye to somebody out of the frame. She beams when she sees them, and Suga can’t help himself from smiling as well. 

“Suga-san! Sawamura-san!” She waves to them both and Daichi offers her a wave of his own in return. “How have you been?” 

“We’ve been well.” Suga says. “We left for the countryside, which is lovely. There’s so much air out here.” 

“And a lovely lack of people that know us.” Daichi adds. “I swear, if we had to listen to one more villager interrupt us to refer to Koushi as Prince Sugawara-,” 

“I _am_ a prince,” Suga points out, poking Daichi in the shoulder teasingly. “Are you really telling them to forgo the title, Daichi? Just because you aren't as well-known in these parts doesn't mean that you need to be jealous.” 

“I don't mind not being well-known,” Daichi says, catching his hand and pressing a kiss to the back of it. “I'm only asking for some privacy.” 

Hitoka clears her throat, blushing bright red. 

“Apologies, Hitoka.” Suga says as he withdraws his hand. “How have you been?” 

“It’s not a problem.” She says, giving him a half-smile. “I-I received a marriage proposal.” 

“From Shimizu-san?” Daichi asks, leaning closer. 

Hitoka’s blush grows deeper. 

“Hitoka!” Suga yells, and nearly upsets their water. “You should have contacted us earlier! Did you accept?” 

Hitoka buries her face in both hands, and nods. “She did it after the last party we threw.” She says, the sound muffled. “She was wearing the purple gown that she knows I like, and she-,” She breaks off and makes a small noise of embarrassment. 

“She proposed.” Suga says, beaming. “That’s all we need to know, really. When’s the wedding? We should see if we can travel down to see you both for it.” 

“We haven’t decided on a date, Suga-san.” Hitoka says, bright red but smiling wide. “But as soon as we do, you’ll be the first to know. Shouyou said-,”

“Shouyou knew before we did?” Suga says, swooning in mock betrayal. “Hitoka, how could you?” 

“He contacted me earlier!” She cries. “I wanted to tell everybody in Miliwyn first, and since you both are a bit out of the range, I thought-,” 

“No excuses!” Suga says, waving both hands dramatically. “I suppose we’ll have to contact you twice as often to make up for it, that’s all. We don’t keep in contact as much as I had hoped anyway.” He frowns.

“We are busy over here.” Hitoka says. “Shimizu always has royal business to attend to, and I try to help her as much as I can.” 

“Although I didn’t enchant that water so that it could gather dust, Sugawara.” Shimizu says from somewhere out of the frame, and Suga’s jaw drops. 

“ _Shimizu!_ ” He says, and Hitoka starts laughing. Daichi smiles at him and Suga starts trying to justify himself, because they’ve clearly been very busy over here as well, haven’t they Daichi, and it’s not _all_ his fault, you know.

It’s nice, though. It’s been nice since they left. 

Daichi and Suga left Miliwyn almost as soon as they returned. Suga had made excuses about wanting to be out in the fresh air which were only halfway excuses anyway, and Daichi had reassured his guards that he was alive and well and they had been on their way.

Part of it, Suga thinks, is that Miliwyn seems very dull all of sudden. 

Its forests are beautiful and clear, and the palace is always alight during the day, but for the first time in a very long time, he feels no obligation to stay. He no longer has a curse to bear alone, no longer has a dear friend to go rescue, and has no marriage to stay and arrange. And he thinks that for a while, he’d like to be with Daichi. Alone. 

The days are longer now, as they stretch out towards the summer. The trees are spaced farther apart, and there’s no constant wind or rain. The sun shines more days than it does not, but this has taken some getting used to as well. The nights are dark and the days are bright and Suga is always mixed up, now. 

He still misses Hitoka and Shouyou and Tooru, of course. But they’re going to be there when he gets back. For once, he has no worries. 

Daichi is a steady presence by his side. He makes them tea in the afternoon, and they take walks in the mornings and sometimes they lie on their bed and kiss lazily, going nowhere but filled with warmth and love and it is at these moments that Suga feels happy to the point of bursting. He feels loved in return. 

It’s days like these that he loves the feeling of sunlight again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow!! we're finally finished!! thank you so much to everybody who stuck with me through my first completed multichapter fic until the end. i know my updating jumped around a lot and you all have been so kind and patient and it means so much. special thanks to anybody who left kudos or a comment; i love y'all and you encouraged me so much <3 <3 <3

**Author's Note:**

> you can always find me on either [twitter](https://twitter.com/poppyrainstorm) or on [tumblr](https://poppyrainstorm.tumblr.com) if you want to visit or talk to me!!


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